BOSTON (WHDH) - Massachusetts is making progress in the coronavirus pandemic, with the number of hospitalizations and high-risk communities going down.
Gov. Charlie Baker said during a press conference Thursday that “there’s a lot of very positive stuff going on here.”
Cities and towns considered high-risk for coronavirus transmission dropped to 13, according to the Mass. Department of Public Health.
Those still in the red include:
- Chicopee
- Springfield
- Littleton
- Lowell
- Dracut
- Lawrence
- Haverhill
- Brockton
- Taunton
- Rochester
- New Bedford
- Edgartown
- Nantucket
Baker announced that the number of people hospitalized due to the coronavirus has also dropped.
“The hospital count for COVID cases went below 500 for the first time since October,” he saidd.
In addition, pooled testing in schools showed that coronavirus cases are down.
Baker discussed whether the state can adjust its timeline for a final reopening.
“We’re going to balance the economic stuff with the public health data, and if we see significant improvements in our data over the course of the next month or so, we’ll make adjustments,” he said.
Baker added that he is doing what he believes is best for Mass., paying no attention to how other states are handling lifting COVID-19 restrictions.
“Other states will do what other states will do,” he said.
In New York, entertainment is making a comeback with Broadway tickets now on sale for shows reopening in September.
Walt Disney World and Sea World in Florida both ditched temperature checks for guests.
Regardless of reopening, Baker says he wants the public to know testing is still available, although he believes tensions have eased.
“I think it’s less about stepping away from testing and more just the fact that as more and more people have gotten vaccinated, fewer and fewer people are as worried about catching COVID,” he said.
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