From HockomockSports.com we share the FHS sports results:
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued new recommendations on getting a Covid-19 vaccine for those with a history of allergies.The recommendations, published on the CDC’s site on Saturday, suggest that people who have ever had a severe allergic reaction, also known as anaphylaxis, to any ingredient in a Covid-19 vaccine should not get that vaccine.The CDC considers a reaction severe if it requires the person to be treated with epinephrine or they need to be hospitalized. Symptoms of anaphylaxis can include shortness of breath, a closing of the throat, nausea, and dizziness.The agency added that people with a history of anaphylaxis to other vaccines or injectable medications should consult their doctor on getting the Covid-19 vaccine.
A Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) advisory panel recommended on Sunday that people 75 and older and certain front-line essential workers be next in line for COVID-19 vaccines.Continue reading the article online
The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) voted 13-1 to advise the CDC to include those 75 and older and specific front-line essential workers, including emergency responders and teachers, in the next phase of coronavirus vaccinations, several news outlets reported Sunday.
These recommendations would apply to phase 1b of the vaccination process, after the committee and the CDC advised that health care workers and residents of nursing homes and long-term care facilities get the first vaccinations in the country. Phase 1b will aim to vaccinate about 50 million people before the end of February, according to The New York Times.
From CommonWealth Magazine we share two articles of interest for Franklin:
Elderly challenges go well beyond COVID
"THE EMERGENCE of promising vaccines to fight COVID-19 is certainly good news, but those older adults on fixed or limited incomes will continue to face serious issues in daily living in a variety of areas. Many of these issues existed before the pandemic, and some have been made worse as a consequence of the deadly virus. Older adults, especially those in nursing homes, suffered the highest rates of infection and death from the virus, and those rates were even more disastrous for older adults of color. The pandemic caused a serious look at the deficiencies in our long-term care system, both institutional and community-based, and most of these deficiencies will remain even after a large portion of Americans have been vaccinated.
In skilled nursing facilities, we’ve learned that older adults should not be forced to live with three or more unrelated elderly in the same room. We know that nursing home staff are underpaid and often need to work in two or more nursing homes to make a living. Many staff are also unvaccinated for influenza, and may have the same low rates of vaccination when COVID-19 vaccines are made available. We’ve also learned that infection prevention and control is an especially weak process in most nursing homes. These are all factors that made such facilities ripe for attack by COVID-19."
"FOR DECADES, Massachusetts has been known for having the best health care in the world. As doctors who’ve practiced medicine for a combined 40 years in the Commonwealth, we have seen firsthand how our state has enjoyed the best hospitals and best doctors and providers to deliver the highest standard of care. Our biggest challenge? How to ensure those exceptional services can be accessed by every patient who needs them.Then came COVID-19 – which threatened our nation’s health care system like no time in modern history. Instead of collapsing, our health care system reinvented itself. The rapid and effective use of virtual care (telehealth and other services) allowed us to continue to provide care to patients while the threat of coronavirus kept them at a distance. Patients with behavioral health needs, many of which were exacerbated by the pandemic, were able to still see their mental health providers. Patients with acute stroke could get rapid evaluations in a local emergency department but be transferred for advanced care if necessary. Unlike in-person visits to shops, restaurants, and bars which were abruptly cancelled, much needed virtual visits to medical specialists could continue unimpeded. Regular medical care is like car maintenance, when it is postponed or ignored conditions deteriorate rapidly."
"The virtual Senior Health & Wellness Fair will be LIVE on Friday, Nov 20, 2020! The 60-min show, which will be broadcast on local cable access TV in MetroWest, YouTube & Facebook, will offer expertise & resources from local & state experts, as well as fun!"
 |
| Senator Karen Spilka: Senior Health & Wellness Fair - Nov 20 |
During the annual Medicare Open Enrollment period (October 15th-December 7th), you will have a chance to change your plans for next year.
SHINE's certified Medicare counselors can help you understand your plan changes, as well as other options you may have.
For the link to join, email: adoggett@franklinma.gov.
 |
| Franklin Senior Center: Medicare Update with SHINE - Oct 19 - 2:00 PM |
From the Milford Daily News, articles of interest for Franklin:
"From the beginning of the pandemic, most were aware of the disease’s devastating mortality rate among older people.As of Aug. 11, Massachusetts residents over age 70 accounted for 86% of the state’s COVID-19 deaths, according to data released by the Massachusetts Department of Public Health. About 65% of the total deaths reported in the state have occurred at skilled-nursing facilities, nursing homes and rest homes.
Still, as COVID-19 tore across the state and new cases surged from March through late June, skilled-nursing facilities, assisted living facilities and many independent living facilities became hot spots for the infectious disease.
Joining first responders, doctors and nurses — familiar heroes in times of crisis — residents, caregivers and staff at these facilities found themselves on the front lines of the pandemic. Too often, they found themselves alone in the fight."
"The U.S. Census Bureau has released a new population report on the readiness of housing to meet the needs of the nation’s aging population. The report – Old Housing, New Needs: Is America’s Housing Ready for an Aging Population? – uses data from the 2011 American Housing Survey (AHS) to provide national-level estimates of housing units with aging-accessible features, such as handrails or grab bars in bathrooms, step-free entryways, and wheelchair-accessible kitchens, as well as geographic differences in the prevalence of homes with these features.Shared from the US Census
This report also examines the demographic and economic characteristics of households where older adults reported difficulty using these home features compared with households where older adults reported no such difficulty."
 |
| US Census Bureau - Report on Housing for Aging Population |
 |
| Calling All Franklin High School Senior Parents — Adopt A Senior! |
Tonight, at 8:20 (20:20 military time), we send this message. @FPS_FAA @FHSPantherbook @FranklinHSDrama @FranklinHSMusic @fhs_choral @FranklinMatters pic.twitter.com/CivMVywc2I— FranklinHighSchool (@FranklinHS) May 2, 2020
 |
| The lights at FHS on May 1 between 8:00 and 8:20 |
To the Class of 2020, we are all thinking of you and wishing you the best! The future is bright! #BeTheLight #FHSseniors #Classof2020 @FranklinHS @FHS2020_ @FHSPantherbook @TOFranklinMA @FranklinRec pic.twitter.com/5HFRlHWfjl— Franklin Public Schools, MA (@FranklinPSNews) April 24, 2020
 |
| Stadium lights to honor the Class of 2020 |
"Senior citizens and their advocates have long struggled to tackle seclusion and loneliness in a portion of the population – particularly those less fortunate than Foley, without close family or the ability to drive.Continue reading the article online (subscription may be required)
To see her grandchildren, 79-year-old Hopedale resident Phyllis Foley arms herself with disinfecting wipes, drives a few minutes up the street, and heads into her daughter’s garden.
While she does a little weeding, her grandchildren come out of the house and sit several feet away.
“I think I’ve got a pretty good sense of what to do, because I had to do it for many years,” the former Navy nurse and visiting nurse said, adding that she wipes down every door handle, gives people a wide berth, and rarely leaves her apartment."
 |
| “Senior isolation is always an issue, especially in the winter time” |
"Hours and days for early shopping vary depending on the individual store. Shaw’s, Big Y and Price Chopper are providing them every day of the week from 6-7 a.m., while Market Basket is offering them from 5:30-7 a.m. on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. Hannaford offers them from 6-7 a.m. on those three days.
Grocery chains throughout the region, including Market Basket, Price Chopper, Hannaford, Shaw’s and Big Y, have begun to offer early shopping hours for seniors to help protect them from both coronavirus exposure and the increasing difficulty of securing high-demand products.
Customers aged 60 and over will have first access to food and supplies in the store, with younger patrons asked to come later.
Older people are most at risk of health complications and death from coronavirus, and are encouraged to minimize contact with potential carriers of the virus, according to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention."
 |
| Big Y - Franklin, MA |
"Massachusetts-based grocery store Stop & Shop, with locations in Milford, Framingham and other area towns, announced it would begin offering special shopping times to accommodate and protect older customers.
“Effective on Thursday, March 19, Stop & Shop will create hours specifically geared to accommodate customers 60 and older,” the company said in a statement. “Stop & Shop stores will open from 6 a.m. to 7:30 a.m. ONLY for customers over the age of 60 who the CDC and local health officials say are most vulnerable.”
The company said it was making the decision to allow community members in this age category to shop in a less crowded environment, which better enables social distancing.
Stop & Shop said it would not be requesting ID for entry, but added that they hope everyone would respect the purpose of the early opening, and “do the right thing for our older neighbors.”
 |
| https://stopandshop.com/ |
"The first pieces of steel went skyward in Polar Park Monday and changed Worcester Red Sox president Dr. Charles Steinberg’s image of what will be come April 2021.
Before this, Steinberg couldn’t see much beyond the weeds, cracked asphalt and rocks above Madison Street that preceded what is becoming a ballpark.
“The vision is Larry Lucchino and Janet Marie Smith,” said Steinberg, while standing just above where the WooSox bullpen will be along the first base line. “They have 3D architectural talent that I don’t have. I imagine the cotton candy and the Cracker Jacks. I imagine where your seats will be and how many jalapeños are on your nachos.
“Larry and Janet Marie have that visual ability to see what could be, and they did it with Camden Yards. Larry had that vision, and Janet Marie was able to translate it to the architects. Larry had the vision of Petco Park in San Diego, and I did not. That’s not my area.”
"Christopher House of Worcester is in relatively good shape for a nursing home. Residents — some who have lived there for years — receive attentive care and take part in activities such as the ice cream social several were enjoying on Wednesday. The 24-year-old building is in comfortable condition.
“Nobody wants to go to a nursing home, but sometimes people really thrive here,” said Sandra Mahoney, administrator of the nonprofit Christopher House.
Mahoney said it’s a constant frustration finding money to adequately pay direct care staff to maintain high quality care and to invest in the physical plant.
That’s because Medicaid, the state-administered program that pays for long-term care for people with low income, effectively limits nursing homes’ revenue through payment based on costs that are several years old. About two-thirds of nursing home residents, nearly 30,000 frail elders statewide, rely on Medicaid to pay for their care."
 |
| Sandra Mahoney, MHA, FACHCA Administrator with resident (Christopher House photo |
"St. Patrick’s Day came early to the Franklin Senior Center on Friday, as members of the Fire Department spent lunchtime serving plates of corned beef and cabbage, with potatoes and carrots, to a few dozen seniors.Continue reading the article online (subscription may be required)
Although the Lenten season has begun, Catholics in the group had no need to worry about enjoying the classic St. Patty’s day meal instead of sticking with fish and vegetables.
Firefighters had that covered.
“Maybe next year we’ll try not to plan it on a Friday during Lent,” said firefighter/paramedic Doug Perro, going on to quip, “However, we talked to Father Brian (Manning, of the Parish of St. Mary), so you get a special dispensation ... if you’re over 59.”
 |
| "That’s what the Franklin Fire Department is all about." |
"A civil discourse pledge has upset dozens of residents who say the Town Council is targeting free speech rights when it comes to their – and certain councilors’ – online activity. One resident has even suggested it’s a violation of the U.S. Constitution.Continue reading the article online (subscription may be required)
While the proposed pledge originally stated that a councilor’s participation on certain social media channels could violate the Massachusetts’ Open Meeting Law statute, a crowded meeting room applauded as council Chairman Tom Mercer suggested a slight amendment to the pledge toward the end of Wednesday’s meeting.
On Wednesday, councilors approved the Civil Discourse Pledge, Resolution 20-14, which was originally drafted by Town Administrator Jaime Hellen and the Town Council. The resolution follows a series of related administrative actions, starting in 2018 with harassment training for all municipal employees, said Hellen in a memorandum dated Feb. 7.
Designed as an aspiration for the town to make everyone in the community feel welcome, the amended resolution was approved, 6-2-1. Councilors Andrew Bissanti and Eamon McCarthy Earls were opposed, and Matt Kelly abstained."
 |
| FM #191 - Municipal Affordable Housing Trust - Jan 13, 2020 (audio) |
