Mass Gathering Attendees Urged to Get COVID-19 Tests
People who have participated in any of the hundreds of large demonstrations, marches and protests of the last few weeks, or any other large gathering, should get tested for COVID-19 at one of 50 pop-up testing sites that will be made available free of charge on Wednesday and Thursday, Gov. Charlie Baker said. Baker began his Monday press conference by ticking through many of the positive signs from recent days’ public health data, but he reminded everyone that the highly-contagious coronavirus continues to circulate. “Our progress to date is encouraging, but it doesn’t mean the virus has left town,” he said. Fifty testing sites will be established both Wednesday and Thursday, and Baker urged anyone who has participated in a large gathering in the last two weeks to get tested even if they feel fine. “Thousands of people have been congregating in large groups over the past several weeks to exercise their First Amendment rights in the wake of the George Floyd murder. These gatherings are coinciding with reopening, meaning more and more people are moving around with each other,” he said. “And anytime large groups of people come together, there’s a risk for transmission. We certainly support people’s rights to express their views peacefully, but we need to keep up our fight to slow the spread of COVID-19 here in Massachusetts.” A listing of the sites that will be available Wednesday and Thursday will be available at www.mass.gov/gettested.
-Colin A. Young/State House News Service
www.statehousenews.com
