BOSTON (AP) - Massachusetts officials on Friday urged more schools to return to full, in-person instruction, saying that only communities with the highest COVID-19 rates should be using any form of remote learning.
Under previous guidance, schools were told to shift between remote learning, in-person learning or a mix of the two depending on their area’s infection rate. Areas with moderate spread were advised to use remote or hybrid learning, while only those with the lowest rates were encouraged to bring students back full-time.
But speaking at a news conference, Gov. Charlie Baker said there’s growing evidence that schools are not a significant source of spread and that keeping students at home hurts their learning and mental health.
“We continue to see too many communities with children learning in remote-only models,” he said. “We all know that losing a week, a month, a quarter or more in the life of a kid’s education has real consequences.”
He cited state data showing that out of 450,000 public school students attending some form of in-person learning, there have been only 252 confirmed COVID-19 cases.
Under new guidance outlined by education officials, schools in areas of low and moderate risk will be expected to teach fully in-person, and even communities with high rates are told to consider a hybrid model rather than going fully remote.
Joining Baker was Jeffrey Riley, the state’s education commissioner, who said “the time to get kids back to school is now.”
“It has become increasingly clear that this virus is going to be with us for a while,” Riley said. “We need to continue to work hard to get as many students back to learning in school buildings as possible.”
The state also announced changes to the way it assigns color-coded risk levels to cities. Meant to guide schools and businesses through the state’s phased reopening plan, the colors were previously based on an area’s average virus rate. Now, the levels will take other factors, including the city’s population, into account.
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NEW RESTRICTIONS
A series of new measures meant to curb the spread of COVID-19 took effect in Massachusetts on Friday, including an expanded mask mandate and a stay-at-home advisory during certain hours.
The restrictions, ordered by Republican Gov. Charlie Baker and unveiled earlier this week, took hold at 12:01 a.m.
Baker’s executive order requires anyone above the age of 5 to wear a mask in public, expanding on a previous order that urged people to wear a mask in public if they couldn’t socially distance.
The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority said Friday it will enforce the order across the transportation system and that Transit Police have been authorized to fine violators up to $300.
Baker’s order also instructs residents to stay home between 10 p.m. and 5 a.m., with exceptions for certain activities including taking a walk or running critical errands.
It also requires the early closure of many businesses and activities each night at 9:30 p.m., including requiring restaurants to stop table service and mandating liquor stores to stop selling alcohol. Movie theaters, gyms and casinos must also close at 9:30 p.m.
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LONG-TERM CARE
Massachusetts health officials will begin imposing temporary admissions freezes at nursing homes and other care facilities that are deemed at risk of spreading COVID-19, under new measures announced Friday.
The state’s Department of Public Health says it will monitor factors including infection rates, staffing levels and protective equipment supplies at long-term care facilities across the state. If a facility is determined to be at risk of an outbreak, it will be required to stop admitting new residents until conditions improve.
The health department says it will continue to deploy emergency staffing and equipment to facilities as needed.
In announcing the measure, state health officials cited climbing COVID-19 cases across the state and the virus’ disproportionate impact on care facilities. As of Thursday, the state was reporting 6,464 probable or confirmed COVID-19 deaths in long-term care facilities.
The state has also revised visitation guidance at care facilities to promote safe social interaction around the holidays. Visitors must be allowed to stay for at least 45 minutes, up from 30 minutes, and facilities are barred from creating policies for out-of-state visitors that are more restrictive than Gov. Charlie Baker’s travel order.
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SCHOOL DELAY
Public schools in Worcester are delaying the start of in-person classes until Jan. 25 amid rising COVID-19 cases across the city and state, under a plan approved Thursday.
The state’s second-largest district was planning to allow high-needs students and vocational students to return to in-person classes on Nov. 16, but the district’s governing body postponed that date at its Thursday meeting, according to the Telegram & Gazette.
Other students were previously expected to return in January or February. The district’s superintendent said officials will set a new return date during the first week of December.
The move to postpone was a “tough decision,” said Worcester Mayor Joseph Petty, chairman of the district’s School Committee. School officials cited rising cases of COVID-19 and a delay in the installation of devices to help kill airborne viruses in school buildings.
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