As the Department of Public Health and other agencies and organizations provide updates on COVID-19, I wanted to share with you the new information being reported:
Statewide Updates
- In Massachusetts, there is a total of 1838 cases of COVID-19 and a total of 19794 tests have been performed.
- Today, the order for closing schools and non-emergency child care centers was extended until Monday, May 4. The Commonwealth will be partnering with WGBH to provide free online resources for students and will continue to offer educational programming on their TV channel Monday through Friday from 12:00 PM-5:00 PM.
- The Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD) issued new guidance today telling owners of state-aided low-income housing and local housing authorities to suspend non-emergency evictions. In addition, DHCD is moving to temporarily suspend terminations of federal and state rental vouchers under their purview. To learn more click here.
- The Division of Banks has issued new guidance to financial institutions and lenders in the Commonwealth encouraging them to provide relief for borrowers and will advocate for a 60-day stay on behalf of all homeowners facing imminent foreclosure on their homes. To learn more click here.
- The Department of Public Health issued a new order to support grocery stores, pharmacies, and their employees. This order requires stores to:
- Provide at least one hour per day of shopping for adults over 60-years-old
- Offer sanitation options to clean shopping carts and frequent points of contact
- Implement social distancing policies
- Prohibit reusable bags, lift all local regulations on plastic bag bans. Stores may not charge customers a fee for store-provided bags.
- To read more about this guidance click here.
- This week the Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development and the Department of Unemployment Assistance will be hosting town halls to take you through the process of filing a successful unemployment claim. To sign up click here.
- To file an unemployment claim, click here. If you have trouble filing a claim, please contact my office for assistance.
- Anyone feeling overwhelmed with sadness, anxiety or stress, or who wants to harm themselves or others, can access the mental health, emotional support, and suicide prevention program Call2Talk by dialing 2-1-1. Call2Talk is also available by calling 508-532-2255 or by texting C2T to 741741.
- Text COVIDMA to 888-777 to receive daily text updates from the Massachusetts Department of Public Health.
Local Updates
- The Newton-Needham Regional Chamber is offering a webinar on Friday, March 27 at 11:00 AM for small businesses on how to apply for SBA Emergency Loans. This webinar is free and open to members and nonmembers and you can register here.
- The Town of Needham has launched a new COVID-19 website today dedicated to providing up-to-date information and resources to the Needham community. To visit this website click here.
- In Dover, if you have recently traveled to any international or high-risk domestic location to notify the Board of Health via fedorj@doversherborn.org.
- In Medfield, The Board of Selectmen and Town Administrator have issued a memo to provide an update on COVID-19 in the Medfield community. This provides an update on how key town services are functioning during this time and you can read it here.
In addition to these updates, my office is still accessible
so please continue to reach out and we will get back to you.
Email: Denise.Garlick@mahouse.gov
Phone: 617-722-2380
Our local boards of health, the Department of Public
Health, and the Centers for Disease Control are continuing to maintain websites
with the most updated information regarding COVID-19 that you can access here:
Needham Health Department Updates: http://www.needhamma.gov/85/Public-Health
Medfield Updates: http://www.town.medfield.net/1860/Coronavirus-Info-COVID-19
Dover Updates: http://doverma.org/
Department of Public Health: https://www.mass.gov/resource/information-on-the-outbreak-of-coronavirus-disease-2019-covid-19, call
2-1-1, or text COVIDMA to 888-777.
Centers for Disease Control: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-nCoV/index.html
