Massachusetts mayors tighten mask restrictions

After Gov. Charlie Baker tightened mask-wearing guidelines last week following a mostly mask-free summer, mayors are reconsidering — or imposing — more restrictive masking mandates of their own.

“Brockton has been changed forever because of COVID,” said Brockton Mayor Robert Sullivan, who instituted a mask policy inside all city buildings. “Anything that I can do as a lifelong Brocktonian and as the elected mayor, I’m going to do out of an abundance of caution.”

Brockton, along with Revere, instituted a stricter mask policy this week. Sullivan said he was urged to institute the mandate in city buildings following a tenfold spike in cases from the low teens in mid-July to 153 on Aug. 3.

Although schools are considered city buildings, Brockton hasn’t instituted a masking policy for the fall. Sullivan said he’s taking a “wait and see” approach but would consider “any type of endeavor we can do to protect the safety of the residents and the business owners in Brockton,” he said.

Revere Mayor Brian Arrigo saw cases tick up in Revere from a low of zero to around 15 and instituted a “data-driven” mask mandate this week for residents over 5 “while inside a building open to the public,” pumping gas and on public transit. He added that the city will make a decision in the following weeks about a mask mandate in schools, which the Baker administration did not implement beyond a recommendation.

“I appreciate the fact that we have the autonomy because… Lexington and Concord and other folks may have a whole different set of circumstances than we have,” he said of the school district’s upcoming decision.

Somerville’s mayor, Joseph Curtatone, is considering taking things a step further, especially after seeing vaccination rates lag among people between age 12 and their mid-20s. Although the city already has a mask mandate in place in city buildings, he’s considering further restrictions including a citywide mask mandate, mandating vaccines for city and school staff, and instituting a masking policy for the fall in schools.

After witnessing millions of COVID-19 deaths worldwide, “why would you ever want to go back to anything like that?” he said. “We have the ability to control the virus, and we either control the virus or it will control us.”

from Boston Herald https://ift.tt/3A7Eq2a