Local COVID-19 updates
Apr. 3rd, 2020 08:50 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
edschweppeAs of 4PM this afternoon, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts is reporting thirty-eight more deaths from COVID-19 (for a total of 192 to date), 1436 new cases (for a total of 10402) and 6354 more persons tested (for a total of 62962). Lots more testing is good; and I suppose, all things considered, that "only" linear growth in infections and deaths is as not-bad as can be hoped for at this stage of a pandemic.
The town of Acton is now reporting eleven confirmed cases in the town (up from six yesterday). The town has not reported any deaths in the town.
I drove past the Littleton train station this afternoon; there were only two cars in the lower lot and none in any of the more distant lots. En route, I also drove past the entrance to the Life Care Center of Nashoba Valley. There were a bunch of television news vehicles parked out front, and a Littleton police cruiser (with blue lights flashing) blocking the driveway. Various news reports (including the Boston Globe) stated that National Guard troops were testing patients at Life Care and several other long-term care facilities statewide.
Meanwhile, Governor Baker announced a "Community Tracing Collaborative" program to trace people who have come into contact with COVID-19 patients, as well as keep in touch with those who've tested positive and provide support. It's not clear from the news coverage if those contacts will themselves be tested any time soon, and the volume of cases needing tracing is still growing rapidly. However, I like the idea of spinning up a state-level tracing system even if it won't necessarily help in this first wave of the pandemic. I have to think that we'll want to reopen businesses as soon as possible. In order to contain any subsequent breakouts (which will occur, until we have an effective and widely distributed vaccine), that contact-tracing capacity will be essential to the sort of test/trace/isolate technique that has been proven to work in other nations.
The town of Acton is now reporting eleven confirmed cases in the town (up from six yesterday). The town has not reported any deaths in the town.
I drove past the Littleton train station this afternoon; there were only two cars in the lower lot and none in any of the more distant lots. En route, I also drove past the entrance to the Life Care Center of Nashoba Valley. There were a bunch of television news vehicles parked out front, and a Littleton police cruiser (with blue lights flashing) blocking the driveway. Various news reports (including the Boston Globe) stated that National Guard troops were testing patients at Life Care and several other long-term care facilities statewide.
Meanwhile, Governor Baker announced a "Community Tracing Collaborative" program to trace people who have come into contact with COVID-19 patients, as well as keep in touch with those who've tested positive and provide support. It's not clear from the news coverage if those contacts will themselves be tested any time soon, and the volume of cases needing tracing is still growing rapidly. However, I like the idea of spinning up a state-level tracing system even if it won't necessarily help in this first wave of the pandemic. I have to think that we'll want to reopen businesses as soon as possible. In order to contain any subsequent breakouts (which will occur, until we have an effective and widely distributed vaccine), that contact-tracing capacity will be essential to the sort of test/trace/isolate technique that has been proven to work in other nations.