BOSTON (WHDH) - Boston Mayor Michelle Wu on Monday announced a new COVID-19 Advisory Committee, just days after the first known case of the omicron variant was detected in Massachusetts.
The new committee is comprised of health professionals, as well as community, business, and cultural leaders.
The 18-member committee, which will be chaired by Dr. Bisola Ojikutu, Executive Director of the Boston Public Health Commission, “will assist in decision-making around tackling new variants and working to end the pandemic in Boston,” according to Wu.
“As new variants are coming, we need to be ahead of that and make sure that the number one priority is that we can keep everyone safe so that our businesses can keep going so that we can keep schools open, rather than have everything shut down again,” Wu said.
The first case of omicron was detected in a Middlesex County woman in her 20s who traveled out of state, the Mass. Department of Public Health announced Saturday.
The woman is said to be fully vaccinated and experiencing a mild disease that did not require hospitalization.
Wu urged residents to get vaccinated, get boosted, get tested if they have symptoms, and continue to take precautions, such as wearing masks when indoors and while traveling, washing their hands, and limiting the size of holiday gatherings.
Wu said the city’s indoor mask mandate will remain in place until further notice and a total of 20,000 rapid COVID-19 test kits will be given out in neighborhoods where they’re needed most.
“We’re now entering year three of this public health emergency with new variants continuing to emerge,” Wu said. “It’s clear that we need leadership from every sector to help us take on this public health crisis with immediate steps.”
Boston plans to ramp up vaccinations with high-capacity clinics on four Saturdays in December and January.
The Vine Street Community Health Center in Roxbury will host the first clinic on Dec. 11. A vaccination clinic at Boston City Hall will also be open on Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
The city currently has a 5.2 percent positive test rate, a number that has increased by 15 percent over the last two weeks. Data indicates that just 21 percent of vaccinated Bostonians have gotten a booster shot.
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