As of today, 844 Cambridge residents have tested positive for COVID-19, and 71 residents have passed away. Learn more here:https://bit.ly/2J2BnQj. There are 78,462 cases of COVID-19 in Massachusetts including 17,774 in Middlesex County. 394,728 tests have been performed and 5,108 patients have passed away. Learn more here: https://bit.ly/3dEYzRZ.
Save the date
I will be hosting my weekly COVID-19 town hall this Wednesday at 5PM. I will be joined by Robert Coughlin, President and CEO of MassBio, and Brian Johnson, President of MassMedic. You can register for the Zoom here: https://bit.ly/2Kelp6l or join in by watching CCTV Channel 9 or Facebook Live. Please submit questions you have ahead of time to Marjorie.Decker@mahouse.gov, or submit them in the Q&A chat during the town hall. I hope to see you there.
Cambridge Updates
Information on the City's Small Business COVID-19 Recovery Grant Program is now available. This program will help HUD eligible for-profit retail, food, personal services, and creative businesses by providing grants of up to $10,000 per brick and mortar business. You can learn more about the program here: https://bit.ly/3cAFVKZ. Applications will become available on May 14th and the deadline to apply is June 12th.
Due to limited supply, the City will only be distributing face masks at the Cambridge Police Department. Mask distribution will occur 7 days per week from 11AM-1PM. Officers in marked police cruisers will also have masks to distribute to residents without them and Homeless Outreach Officers will have an available supply and will be proactively providing masks to residents who may not have access to one. Learn more here: https://bit.ly/2YyuQWB.
Multilingual resources are always available on the City of Cambridge's website. This includes translated information on city resources and about COVID-19. You can find them here: https://bit.ly/2wKXAzA.
State Action Updates
Today, the Governor's administration announced a four-phase reopening approach. Public health metrics will determine when the first phase of reopening begins. The phases are:
1. "Start:" limited industries resume operations with severe restrictions
2. "Cautious:" additional industries resume operations with restrictions and capacity limits
3. "Vigilant:" additional industries resume operations with guidance
4. "New Normal:" development of vaccine and/or therapy enables resumption of "new normal"
You can learn more about the four-phase reopening approach here: https://bit.ly/2SXGKWd.
The Department of Public Health and the COVID-19 Command Center, in consultation with the Reopening Advisory Board, have developed Mandatory Workplace Safety Standards that will apply to all sectors and industries once reopening begins. You can learn more about these safety standards here: https://bit.ly/3fLhpc3.
The Reopening Advisory Board is scheduled to provide its full report to the Governor next Monday, May 18th.
Where to give
If you are able to give to others during this time, I encourage you to look to the following places that are working to help those most affected by COVID-19:
Cambridge CoHousing is collecting food this Friday to go to Chelsea on Saturday. Between 3-4:30 pm on this Friday 5/15, please bring your donations (see what's needed below) to the 175 Richdale Ave entrance of CoHousing, either in a paper bag or small box. Volunteers will be there to receive the food, and if they are not, you can bring it into the breezeway area and leave it there. Please mark it clearly "FOR CHELSEA".
WHAT IS NEEDED:
- Diapers/baby wipes -- these are very needed.
- CANNED/JARRED/PACKAGED -- beans, soups, spaghetti sauces, etc...
- ALSO, Dry legumes, pasta, crackers, chips, cereals (low sugar best)
- Unopened cans/bags of dog or cat food
This effort is supporting the Chelsea Food Collaborative and in lieu of food donations, you can make a financial donation here.
Mayor's Disaster Relief Fund: https://bit.ly/3bgTBJU
Cambridge Health Alliance: https://bit.ly/2vWegUB
Cambridge Community Foundation: https://bit.ly/33ImGeE
Food for Free: https://bit.ly/3afFuEE
Greater Boston Food Bank: https://www.gbfb.org/
Cradles to Crayons Emergency Essentials Fund: https://bit.ly/2WHOD4V
Enroot Emergency Immigrant Cash Assistance Fund: https://bit.ly/2y7bBIe
The One Chelsea Fund: https://bit.ly/2W6dGO7
As always, do not hesitate to reach out to me with questions or concerns at Marjorie.Decker@mahouse.gov.
Sincerely,
Marjorie