MindShift: "How to Choose the Best Face Mask for Your Kids"

MindShift (@MindShiftKQED) tweeted on Mon, Aug 30, 2021:

Experts agree that the most important thing in selecting masks is to choose one that a child will actually wear properly all day long. https://t.co/aY4VKYP5Wn

"Which masks are best to keep kids safe? It's a question on many parents' minds as students return to in-person school amid a huge wave of coronavirus infections. Masking is a key safety measure in schools for all kids, especially for children too young to be eligible for any COVID-19 vaccine.

A recent study involving 100 school districts and 14 charter schools in North Carolina found that masks were effective at preventing in-school transmission of COVID-19 — even with physical distancing of less than 3 feet.

We asked several experts what parents should consider when it comes to masks for their kids. They all agreed that the most important thing is to choose one that a child will actually wear properly all day long."

Continue reading the article online ->   https://www.kqed.org/mindshift/58388/how-to-choose-the-best-face-mask-for-your-kids

Shared from Twitter: https://twitter.com/MindShiftKQED/status/1432544925153853440?s=03

MindShift:  "How to Choose the Best Face Mask for Your Kids"

MIAA statement on indoor mask wearing mandate

MIAA (@MIAA033) tweeted on Thu, Aug 26, 2021:

Read #MIAA statement from Executive Director Bob Baldwin regarding the recent indoor mask wearing mandate by @MASchoolsK12  

#OneTeamOneMIAA   

#maskupMIAA

😷 https://t.co/lB5Wr5onmp

Shared from Twitter: https://twitter.com/MIAA033/status/1430876874213924866?s=03

MIAA statement on indoor mask wearing mandate

.

Franklin, MA: School Committee - Agenda - Aug 24, 2021

School Committee Meeting

Municipal Building - Council Chambers (Virtual Link in Agenda)

• Call to Order 
• Pledge of Allegiance 
• Moment of Silence

I. Routine Business
A. Review of Agenda
B. Citizen’s Comments

In the spirit of open communication, “the Committee will hold a public participation segment (also called Citizen’s Comments) about matters not related to an agenda item at the beginning of each regular School Committee meeting. The Committee will listen to, but not respond to any comment made…. A Committee member may add an agenda item to a future meeting as a result of a citizen comment…. The Committee will hear public comments related to an agenda item when the Chair deems appropriate during the Committee meeting. Topics for discussion during the meeting must be limited to those items listed on the Committee meeting agenda for that evening…. ” - from Policy BEDH

 
C. FHS Student Representative Comments
D. Superintendent’s Report

II. Guests/Presentations
A. none

III. Discussion/Action Items
A. Policy - Waiving 1st reading
I recommend waiving the First Reading of Policy EBCFA Face Coverings as discussed.
B. Policy Adoption
I recommend adopting policy EBCFA - Face Coverings as discussed.
C. ACCEPT Collaborative Capital Reserve
I recommend the approval of the creation of ACCEPT’s Capital Reserve with a balance limit of $1,000,000 for the purpose of accumulating funds for the acquisition, maintenance and improvement of capital items.
D. School Handbooks and Back to School Health and Safety
I recommend approval of the school handbooks as discussed.

IV. Discussion Only Items
A. Back to School Status Update - 8-20-21
B. Summary of New Hires

V.  Information Matters
A. School Committee Sub-Committee Reports (e.g. Ad Hoc Supt. Evaluation, Budget, Community Relations/Public Schools Advocacy, Policy, Transportation)
B. School Committee Liaison Reports (e.g. Joint PCC, Substance Abuse Task Force, School Wellness Advisory Council)

VI. New Business
A. To discuss any future agenda items

VII. Consent Agenda
A. Approval of Minutes
I recommend approval of the minutes from the August 10, 2021 School Committee meeting as detailed.
B. Transfers
I recommend approval of the budget transfers as detailed.
C. FHS Gift
I recommend acceptance of a check for $901.90 from Stop & Shop for supplemental supplies at FHS as detailed.
D. Jefferson Donation
I recommend acceptance of the donation of furniture (valued at $3,350.00) from Cardi’s Furniture for the Jefferson Teacher’s Room.
E. Music Gift
I recommend acceptance of a check for $3,287.50 from music parents for in-house enrichment as detailed.
F. Student Activity Accounts
I recommend approval of the 2021-22 Student Activity Accounts as detailed.

VIII. Payment of Bills Dr. Bergen

IX. Payroll Atty. Pond-Pfeffer

X. Adjournment

meeting packet folder -> https://www.franklinps.net/district/meeting-packets/pages/august-24-2021-school-committee-meeting-packet

Agenda doc with connection info ->  https://www.franklinps.net/district/meeting-packets/files/sc-agenda-8-24-21

Franklin, MA: School Committee - Agenda - Aug 24, 2021

In another shift, Baker Administration will mandate masks for K-12 school opening

Massachusetts K-12 (@MASchoolsK12) tweeted Fri, Aug 20, 2021:

PRESS RELEASE Education Commissioner to Ask Board for Authority to Mandate Masks in Public Schools to Provide Time to Increase Vaccinations - https://t.co/CLO6N5sTXC #MaEdu #COVID19MA @MassEducation

"Education Commissioner Jeffrey C. Riley will ask the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education to grant him authority to mandate masks for all public K-12 students, educators, and staff through October 1 to ensure schools fully reopen safely and to provide time for more students and educators to get vaccinated. After October 1, the commissioner’s policy would allow middle and high schools to lift the mask mandate for vaccinated students and staff only if the school meets a certain vaccination rate – at least 80 percent of students and staff in a school building are vaccinated. Unvaccinated students and staff would still be required to wear masks.

The mandate would include exceptions for students who cannot wear a mask due to medical conditions or behavioral needs.

 

The Commissioner will revisit the mandate in the near future to revise it as warranted by public health data. The purpose of the policy is to encourage higher vaccination rates among students and staff and to implement a uniform policy for all schools to begin the year."

Continue reading the full press release:  https://t.co/CLO6N5sTXC

Assuming the proposal does come to reality, the Franklin School Committee will remove from its agenda its own policy update as 'not needed'

https://www.franklinps.net/sites/g/files/vyhlif4431/f/uploads/discussion_action_b_-_policy_adoption.pdf

Press release hared from Twitter:   https://twitter.com/MASchoolsK12/status/1428737492627468290?s=03

CommonWealth Magazine coverage ->  https://commonwealthmagazine.org/health/in-another-shift-baker-mandates-masks-in-schools/

State education commissioner Jeff Riley. (Photo by Llyr Johansen)

Senator Rausch responds to DESE Masking Guidance

Statement from Senator Becca Rausch (D-Needham):

"Families across Massachusetts will finally have peace of mind sending their children back to classrooms with the protection of universal masking in K-12 schools. This victory belongs to every student, parent, teacher, school committee member, public health expert, and advocate who joined me in speaking up for science and safety. The Baker Administration owes our Commonwealth an apology for holding our communities' health and well-being in limbo until mere days before our children return to school, and I urge the Governor to extend these same protections to our early education settings. Statewide data-driven public health measures will give our children the safe, supportive, and successful school year they deserve."

Senator Rausch responds to DESE Masking Guidance

Recap: Three angles on "COVID-19 not going away"

• "Delta Surge Drives Home Painful Truth: COVID Isn’t Going Away"

"As alarm mounted over the coronavirus ripping through the country, Mayor Lori Lightfoot of Chicago was barraged with warnings: Lollapalooza was looking increasingly risky. The annual four-day music festival would draw hundreds of thousands of people downtown, unmasked, crowded into mosh pits, city parks, restaurants and L trains, setting up the threat of a superspreader coronavirus event in the Midwest.

The mayor insisted that the festival go on.

The decision to host the event, which injected a dormant downtown with energy and freely spending tourists at the end of last month, reflected a shifting response to the continuing pandemic. One year ago, Chicago was a muted version of itself: Businesses were restricted, schools were preparing to teach remotely, the police blocked access to beaches on Lake Michigan and Lollapalooza was canceled."

Continue reading the article online (subscription maybe required)

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/08/16/us/covid-delta-variant-us.html

• Here’s what we know so far about the Delta variant and kids

"With COVID-19 cases rising in the United States once again, fueled by the highly transmissible Delta variant, and public health officials repeatedly warning that unvaccinated people remain most vulnerable to infections, concerns are mounting for children younger than 12 who are not yet eligible for the shots.

While Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine has been approved for emergency use in children 12 and older, vaccines have not yet been authorized for those younger than 12. Public health officials hope the shots will be open to younger children in the coming months, but it’s not clear when federal regulators might grant approval.

The Delta variant is now the dominant strain in the country, and data show it’s at least twice as transmissible as the Alpha variant. Here’s what we know so far about the variant and children."

Continue reading the article online (subscription maybe required)

https://www.bostonglobe.com/2021/08/16/nation/heres-what-we-know-so-far-about-delta-variant-kids/

• "Mass. leaders hope this school year will be back to normal — with no remote learning. Is that realistic?:

"Massachusetts state leaders want this school year to be as normal as possible: all children in school buildings every day, optional masking policies left up to local communities, and absolutely no remote learning.

But amid recent closures of local summer camps, the abrupt shutdown of schools in other states, and rising rates nationwide of children being hospitalized with COVID, some parents, school leaders, and experts are questioning whether the state’s ban on remote learning may be unrealistic — and possibly unsafe. Most schools won’t mandate vaccination and even if they did, many students still are too young for the shot.

The uncertainty has left some schools to quietly create their own contingency plans, including preparing weeks of homework for students to do if they’re forced to go home. Educators — along with researchers and families — widely agree that remote learning harmed many students’ academic, social, and emotional wellbeing, but they also fear it may be too early to completely nix it.

“If we have to shut down a school and remote learning isn’t an option, what the hell are we doing?” Burlington Superintendent Eric Conti said. “We feel like we’re operating without a net.”

Continue reading the article online (subscription maybe required)

https://www.bostonglobe.com/2021/08/16/metro/mass-officials-hope-this-school-year-will-be-back-normal-with-no-remote-learning-is-that-realistic/

Students waited in line wearing masks during summer school at Salem Public Schools' Horace Mann School. Salem recently implemented a masking mandate for all students and staff for the school year, joining dozens of other school districts in Massachusetts. JOHN TLUMACKI/GLOBE STAFF

"Public health ... cannot be adequately protected by individual choices"

"The end of the institution, maintenance, and administration of government, is to secure the existence of the body politic, to protect it, and to furnish the individuals who compose it with the power of enjoying in safety and tranquility their natural rights, and the blessings of life…"

—Preamble to the Massachusetts Constitution

"AS TWO MOTHERS who work in education policy, we have been steeped these past 18 months in the ongoing deliberations regarding public education during this pandemic. Where students were educated, under what conditions they were educated, on top of the ongoing questions of how and how well they were educated has been what we have lived for the past year and a half. As we prepare for our third school year impacted by COVID, much of the energy of this discussion has settled on masking.

Gov. Baker and state Education Commissioner Jeff Riley have abdicated their responsibilities for the public health of our schoolchildren and school staff. As a result, this decision has devolved to local school committees, who are on the receiving end of heated arguments of individual choice regarding this public health issue. School committees have been flooded with petitions and messages from abled, medically healthy families making claims to individual rights. However, school committees oversee government schools, and these public schools thrive only when the common good is available to all its students, not just the abled and medically robust. "

Continue reading the essay online ->  https://commonwealthmagazine.org/education/baker-should-protect-all-students-with-mask-order/ 

A young girl on the playground at the Mather Elementary School in Dorchester on October 1, 2020, the first day some students returned to in-person classes. (Photo by Michael Jonas)

The Guardian: "COVID-19 discoveries: what we know now that we didn’t know before"

"How COVID spreads

When COVID first hit the UK, so too did sales of hand sanitiser. On 28 February, Boris Johnson said: “The best thing people can do to prevent the spread of coronavirus is wash your hands.”

The emphasis was, in part, because it was thought one of the key routes by which COVID was spread was by people touching contaminated surfaces and then touching their own face – so called “fomite transmission”. Websites even appeared designed to alert you should you reach for your features, while many people became concerned about whether to disinfect groceries and parcels.

But experts now argue that the role of tiny virus-containing particles called aerosols, emitted along with larger droplets when infected people breathe, speak or cough, were overlooked – and that ventilation in indoor settings is crucial to reduce the spread of COVID."

Continue reading the article online (subscription maybe required)

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/aug/06/four-areas-where-what-is-known-about-the-covid-virus-has-evolved

The Guardian: "COVID-19 discoveries: what we know now that we didn’t know before"

Statement from Senate President Karen E. Spilka on Masks in Schools

Statement from Senate President Karen E. Spilka on Masks in Schools 

 

Next month, almost a million children will return to Massachusetts K-12 public schools. Of these kids, nearly half will be under 12 years old and therefore ineligible to receive the COVID-19 vaccine before returning to the classroom. 

 

Throughout the spring and summer, I joined parents and teachers in the hope that our children could return to school with a sense of normalcy. With the rise of the highly contagious Delta variant, however, the situation is clear: COVID-19 case counts are rising. The number of deaths is once again rising, including among those who have been vaccinated. This means that we are not quite ready to return to our pre-pandemic 'normal.' 

 

Public health experts and the American Academy of Pediatrics agree that universal masking in schools is an effective way to keep our vulnerable children and residents safe as we continue to fight this global pandemic. Parents, school staff and students seek clear, consistent direction as the school year starts, and they deserve to get it from the state. That's why I am calling on the Baker Administration to require masks in school this fall. 

 

No one wants to go back to the dark early days of this public health crisis, and so we must do everything possible to keep people safe and our economy stable. Wearing a mask around vulnerable populations, including unvaccinated children and others, is a small and simple action we can take to do this.  

 

Our children deserve to learn, grow and thrive in a safe and healthy environment, free from the disruption, anxiety and fear of a COVID-19 outbreak in their school. Massachusetts residents have shown such amazing compassion, caring and resilience throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. We need to keep going until our youngest and most vulnerable can be vaccinated.  

Senator Rausch Files Universal Masking Bill For MA Schools

This afternoon (08/02/21), Senator Becca Rausch filed SD. 2723, An Act mitigating COVID-19 transmission among children and families, a bill requiring universal masking among students and staff in all Massachusetts K-12 schools as well as childcare programs licensed under the Department of Early Education and Care. The legislation will also ensure no attendance penalty for students with vaccination appointments during school hours and provide paid time off for parents and caregivers taking students to get vaccinated against COVID-19. 

This bill comes on the heels of last week's announcement from the Baker Administration of nonbinding masking recommendations for Massachusetts schools. The guidance contradicts updated CDC guidance and the American Academy of Pediatrics’ guidance on COVID-19 safety in schools, both of which strongly recommend in-person learning with mandatory mask-wearing indoors and vaccinations for all students, staff, and faculty.

"With less than a month before our children head back to school, this administration chooses to play Russian roulette with the health of Massachusetts students and families,” said Senator Rausch (D-Needham). “I have heard from so many parents, school committee members, teachers, and public health experts who are rightly worried, angry, and frustrated in the wake of DESE’s weak, unenforceable, and non-binding mask recommendations. This administration fails to follow the science to the detriment of every community in this Commonwealth. I filed this bill to give families and school staff the piece of mind they deserve about protecting their health and safety.”

In addition to mandating masks for students aged two and older and staff in Massachusetts early, primary, and secondary education programs, the bill also provides excused absences from school for COVID-19 vaccination appointments, as well as up to six hours of paid leave for any parent or caregiver bringing their child to get immunized against COVID-19. 

"It is the job of our government to protect our most vulnerable - which includes our Commonwealth's children," said Dr. Natalya Davis, a Quincy pediatrician who led a sign-on letter last week among medical professionals to mandate universal masking in Massachusetts schools. "Masks are a simple, safe, cheap intervention that saves lives. This is not debatable despite what opposing voices say. With Delta cases rising, masks are crucial to control the spread of COVID-19 while we vaccinate as many eligible individuals as possible." 

Today, by unanimous vote, the Massachusetts Teachers Association also called on Governor Baker to implement a mandatory mask requirement for all students and staff in all programs from pre-K through higher education.  

Direct link to SD 2723 ->   https://drive.google.com/file/d/1baXTWUCnszLjJP_N26OxlBkfj2oBP_jv/view?usp=sharing

Shared from Twitter:  https://twitter.com/BeccaRauschMA/status/1422302120989143040

Senator Rausch Files Universal Masking Bill For MA Schools

"Baker did acknowledge he is considering new mask rules for schools"

"Baker says Mass. is different as other states impose COVID-19 protocols" 

"Governor Charlie Baker said Wednesday that he sees no need for Massachusetts to reinstate restrictions in response to rising COVID-19 cases, striking a contrast with President Biden, who is urging Americans to mask up again and requiring many federal workers to get vaccinated. 

“Massachusetts is in a much better position than the vast majority of the states in this country with respect to how we deal with and how we’re prepared to deal with COVID,” Baker said, speaking at an environmental funding event. 

But Baker, who tussled with the state’s largest teachers unions over COVID-19 vaccination and safety measures, did say that he is considering mandating masks in public schools this fall."

Continue reading the article online (subscription maybe required)

https://www.bostonglobe.com/2021/07/28/nation/baker-says-mass-is-different-other-states-impose-covid-19-protocols/ 

"Baker did acknowledge he is considering new mask rules for schools"

MA News: Gov Baker says no changes; BPS says masks for students; MA House passes sports betting

Gov Baker: No plans to change COVID policies 

"ALTHOUGH COVID-19 CASE numbers are rising in Massachusetts and nationally, Gov. Charlie Baker said Thursday that he does not intend to reinstate any statewide COVID-related rules. 

“We’re not looking at changing any of our existing rules or policies,” Baker said, speaking at a press conference in Sandwich."

Continue reading the article online
https://commonwealthmagazine.org/health/baker-no-plans-to-change-covid-policies/

"In one of the first signs the resurgence of COVID infections is causing concern among officials, Boston Acting Mayor Kim Janey on Thursday said all public school students in the city will be required to wear face masks when they return to classes in September. 

Already this week, officials in Cambridge, Provincetown, and Nantucket urged residents and visitors to wear masks in indoor public spaces as new outbreaks have been reported; Cambridge, for example, said that 42 percent of the 83 confirmed and probable infections in July so far are “breakthrough” cases involving people who are fully vaccinated."

Continue reading the article online (subscription maybe required)

https://www.bostonglobe.com/2021/07/22/metro/janey-says-bps-students-must-wear-masks-baker-says-he-plans-no-changes-covid-19-policies/

MA House passes sports betting

"THE HOUSE OVERWHELMINGLY approved a bill to legalize sports betting in Massachusetts on Thursday evening, but even before the vote, the question of whether to allow wagers on college sports emerged as a major sticking point between the House and Senate."

Continue reading the article online

https://commonwealthmagazine.org/gambling/house-approves-sports-betting-again-with-bipartisan-vote/

"The state House of Representatives on Thursday overwhelmingly passed a bill that would legalize sports betting in Massachusetts, allowing people 21 and older to place wagers on professional and collegiate athletic events.

The House endorsed the measure 156-3, sending it to the state Senate, which has been less enthusiastic about legalizing the practice."

Continue reading the article online (subscription maybe required)

https://www.bostonglobe.com/2021/07/22/metro/mass-house-passes-bill-legalizing-sports-betting/ 

Franklin TV: Somewhere In Between Or – Why Do I Feel Undressed?

Via Pete Fasciano - 06-13-2021

As I approach [Store Name – Home Depot, Target, CVS] I stop halfway across the parking lot. Turn around and head back to the car. Again.

Forgot my mask. We are at an in-between time where COVID mandates and rules have softened to become guidelines, recommendations – courtesies. While things are getting better and optimism is on the rise, so is confusion. Do I still mask?

To mask, or not to mask – that – is the question:

Whether ‘tis nobler in the mind to suffer 

the slings and arrows of outrageous infection, 

Or to take arms against a sea of virus

And by masking – end them.

To live— to weep

for those now lost upon the shoals of sorry happenstance 

and doubt in science that hath shielded us

as guide – to light our pathway out.

We are in the churlish waters of change as our new normal envelopes us. Although I’m fully vaxxed, I keep a mask with me – as a courtesy where socially appropriate. If it makes others feel more comfortable, I’m good with it. A social grace.

We’re continuing to rework our facility to better accommodate how programs will be produced in a future that still carries some unknowns, and we continue to adapt. We adapted our way in. We adapt our way back out. Reopening does not mean simply unlocking the front door. Our Community room will now support hybrid Zoom meetings as an option for our guest groups. Our radio programs will as well. There will also be production practices yet to be defined in our TV studios.

The world is forever changed. We’re just not quite certain as to how. But, with change comes opportunity. We intend to find it and seize it. At the moment, we may be ‘in between’, but we are looking and leaning forward.

And –  as always –

Thank you for listening to wfpr●fm.

And, thank you for watching. 

Get this week's program guide for Franklin TV and Franklin Public Radio (wfpr.fm) online

http://franklin.tv/programguide.pdf  or for archive purposes

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Iqpyhn4Gj022BrfvWB7y3MtkXIgVmLkl/view?usp=sharing

Franklin TV: Somewhere In Between Or –  Why Do I Feel Undressed?  

Senator Becca Rausch: Navigating the mask guidelines for Families

Senator Becca Rausch (@BeccaRauschMA) tweeted on Mon, May 17, 2021:

ATTN fellow confused parents! Wondering how to keep our younger, not-yet-#vaccine-eligible children safe? Me too. I've got a team of experts to help give us some answers. Join me, Dr. @bethlinas @DrNataliaLinos + Dr. Lael Yanger. Drop your Qs in the replies!
#MApoli #COVID19  -BR https://t.co/FTSaJU33FX

Shared from Twitter: https://twitter.com/BeccaRauschMA/status/1394387015894974466

Senator Becca Rausch: Navigating the mask guidelines for Families

The Hill: "CDC clarifies mask guidance for schools"

"The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is recommending the continued use of masks and social distancing in schools after issuing new guidance last week that stated vaccinated people do not need to wear masks.

On Saturday, the CDC released an Operational Strategy for K-12 schools in which it pointed to data that suggest schools that abide by mask mandates and social-distancing requirements have been able to safely remain open.

In the post clarifying mask guidance for schools, the CDC argued that schools need to make efforts to remain open as a way to combat "systemic health and social inequities" among students of color."

Continue reading online ->  https://thehill.com/policy/healthcare/public-global-health/553776-cdc-clarifies-mask-guidance-for-schools

Direct link to CDC guidance for schools -> https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/community/schools-childcare/operation-strategy.html#fully-vacc

"Mass., Boston to maintain mask requirements for now in wake of new CDC guidance"

"MASKS WILL STILL be required for now in all indoor public places, at all events, and outdoors when social distancing is not possible in Massachusetts, despite new guidance from the Centers from Disease Control advising fully vaccinated individuals that it’s safe in most cases to stop wearing a face covering.

Gov. Charlie Baker’s office issued a statement on Thursday night saying the governor welcomed the new health guidelines from the CDC and would be “updating Massachusetts’ COVID restrictions in the near future.”

“In the meantime, the current mask order remains in place. The Commonwealth is leading the nation in the vaccination effort and the Administration will continue to make vaccines available to everyone who lives, works or studies in Massachusetts,” press secretary Sarah Finlaw said in a statement."

Continue reading the article online  https://commonwealthmagazine.org/health/baker-doesnt-budge-yet-on-masks/

Boston Globe coverage (subscription may be required)

https://www.bostonglobe.com/2021/05/13/metro/experts-divided-cdcs-loosened-mask-reccomendations/

 

 Gov Baker's press conference link -> https://youtu.be/9MmucnVdD2Y

 

Recap - Board of Health meeting - May 5, 2021

Quick Recap:

• No change in mask requirements for sports, may see change after May 10
• Improper demolition of building at 76 Jordan Road becoming more of a mess, asbestos found, mitigation steps with DEP and others now involved
• Winter St deed not filed yet, watching and ready for next steps
• Grant from Metacomet received, more to come on this as it makes progress
• Problem with improper addition to residence at 274 Prospect St and Title 5 documentation

----

As with most meetings in this pandemic period, I took my notes via Twitter during the meeting reporting in real-time via the virtual session

The Twitter hashtag can be found online  #boh0505
https://twitter.com/search?q=%23boh0505&src=typed_query 

The agenda doc for this meeting can be found
https://www.franklinma.gov/sites/g/files/vyhlif6896/f/agendas/agenda-5-5-21.pdf

• Real time reporting underway for the Board of Health meeting #boh0505
• Meeting agenda and connection info in doc -> https://franklinma.gov/sites/g/files/vyhlif6896/f/agendas/agenda-5-5-21.pdf… #boh0505
• Meeting minutes for Apr meeting approved by 3-0 vote
• No change in mask requirements for sports, may see change after May 10 but nothing til then. #boh0505
• and clarification for asbestos; it did come back positive. Needs to hire asbestos certified contractor to handle this. #boh0505 guidance being provided with building inspector; multiple items, scrap ->
• A messy situation that will take time to clear properly. An abutter to the property on the call. Asbestos needs to be treated first, then the remaining debris/junk can be addressed. #boh0505
• Winter St deed not recorded yet, following up, actions steps ready once filled #boh0505
• Metacomet grant released, we are part of the cooperative effort, more to come as it makes progress  #boh0505
• Discussion on a new addition and question on the Title 5 sizing, prior docs show different info than claimant. Include DEP to confirm approach #boh0505 274 Prospect St is address for property in question.
• Motion to adjourn, passed 3-0, meeting ends #boh0505

Audio of meeting to be available in a couple of days

Recap - Board of Health meeting - May 5, 2021

MA News: "Effective April 30, the outdoor mask order will be relaxed"

"With Massachusetts continuing to keep COVID in check and lead the nation in vaccinations, our Administration  announced plans to continue with our phased process to safely reopen our economy.

Effective April 30, the outdoor mask order will be relaxed."

Press Release:  https://www.mass.gov/news/baker-polito-administration-announces-plans-for-continued-reopening

Shared from Twitter:  https://t.co/hHgdGPrVEZ

Press release video: https://youtu.be/zSW3Vwp1Ro4

CDC update on facial covering guidance:  https://www.bostonglobe.com/2021/04/27/nation/cdc-expected-unveil-new-guidance-wearing-masks-outdoors/

Boston Globe coverage  https://www.bostonglobe.com/2021/04/27/metro/baker-relaxes-outdoor-mask-mandate-mass-announces-timeline-lifting-most-capacity-restrictions-reopening-bars-other-businesses/

CommonWealth Magazine coverage:   https://commonwealthmagazine.org/health/massachusetts-will-fully-reopen-on-august-1/

and also:  https://commonwealthmagazine.org/health/baker-laissez-faire-on-vaccine-requirements/

MA News: "Effective April 30, the outdoor mask order will be relaxed"

"Mask Innovation Challenge: Building Tomorrow’s Mask"

 

"The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has launched a competition to develop “the next generation of masks” with the winning submission receiving a $500,000 cash prize.

The competition — “Mask Innovation Challenge: Building Tomorrow’s Mask” — is a partnership between HHS’s Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH).

In the announcement, HHS notes that many health authorities around the world are encouraging people to wear masks to mitigate the spread of infectious diseases, but masks often present some challenges such as: “contact dermatitis with prolonged wear, physical discomfort, fogging of eyeglasses, and difficulty communicating.”

Continue reading the article online

https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/546411-hhs-launches-mask-design-improvement-contest

 

More info on the "Mask Innovation Challenge" can be found

https://www.challenge.gov/challenge/mask-innovation-challenge/

"Mask Innovation Challenge: Building Tomorrow’s Mask"

Town of Franklin, MA: Ben's guide to fully vaccinated status

People are fully vaccinated:

• 2 weeks AFTER their 2nd dose (Pfizer or Moderna) or
• 2 weeks AFTER a 1 dose vaccine (J&J's)

If it has been less than 2 weeks since your 1-dose shot, or if you still need your second dose, you are NOT fully protected. Keep taking all prevention steps! 

 

https://t.co/UFyhMu73c7

https://twitter.com/TOFranklinMA/status/1377689606712401924

 

Town of Franklin, MA: Ben's guide to fully vaccinated status