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Local (and other) COVID-19 updates
Mar. 23rd, 2020 07:47 pmAs the death toll from COVID-19 rises to 9 in Massachusetts (and the number of confirmed cases rises to 777, Governor Baker issued a "stay-at-home advisory" and ordered all "non-essential" businesses in the Commonwealth to close their physical locations:
He also changed the limit on how many people can gather in one place to ten (down from 25 in his March 15 order.)
Now, the list of "essential services" is pretty broad, and specifically includes grocery stores. It also specifically includes "restaurants, bars and other retail establishments that sell food and beverage products to the public," but the prohibition on on-premises consumption remains. (Takeout and delivery remain permitted.)
I suspect my upcoming Current Paying Gig will qualify as "essential services"; that's likely to be a moot point, though, as last I heard they were already in full-remote-work mode.
The town has yet to post its "daily" update.
Meanwhile, the latest COVID-19 relief package is stalling in the US Senate, as the Republicans appear to insist on a half-trillion-dollar loan fund to be disbursed solely under the discretionary authority of the Treasury Secretary; unsurprisingly, the Democratic members of the Senate think that's a Bad Idea. The stock markets (Donald Trump's favorite "metric") are now lower than they were prior to Trump's inauguration back on January 20, 2017.
Full text of the latest order: https://www.mass.gov/doc/march-23-2020-essential-services-and-revised-gatherings-order/download
All businesses and other organizations that do not provide COVID-19 Essential Services shall close their physical workplaces and facilities ("brick-and-mortar premises") to workers, customers and the public as of 12:00 noon on March 24, 2020 and shall not re-open to workers, customers or the public before 12:00 noon on April 7, 2020. Churches, temples, mosques, and other places of worship shall not be required to close their brick and mortar premises to workers or the public; provided, however, that such institutions shall be required to comply with all limitations on gatherings established in section 3 below.
Businesses and other organizations that do not provide COVID-19 Essential Services are encouraged to continue operations where they are able to operate through remote means that do not require workers, customers, or the public to enter or appear at the brick-and-mortar premises closed by this Order.
He also changed the limit on how many people can gather in one place to ten (down from 25 in his March 15 order.)
Now, the list of "essential services" is pretty broad, and specifically includes grocery stores. It also specifically includes "restaurants, bars and other retail establishments that sell food and beverage products to the public," but the prohibition on on-premises consumption remains. (Takeout and delivery remain permitted.)
I suspect my upcoming Current Paying Gig will qualify as "essential services"; that's likely to be a moot point, though, as last I heard they were already in full-remote-work mode.
The town has yet to post its "daily" update.
Meanwhile, the latest COVID-19 relief package is stalling in the US Senate, as the Republicans appear to insist on a half-trillion-dollar loan fund to be disbursed solely under the discretionary authority of the Treasury Secretary; unsurprisingly, the Democratic members of the Senate think that's a Bad Idea. The stock markets (Donald Trump's favorite "metric") are now lower than they were prior to Trump's inauguration back on January 20, 2017.
Full text of the latest order: https://www.mass.gov/doc/march-23-2020-essential-services-and-revised-gatherings-order/download