The number of positive coronavirus tests in Massachusetts has climbed to nearly 200. State officials say 197 people have tested positive for the virus as of yesterday. That's an increase of 33 cases from Sunday. Nearly 13 hundred people had been tested as of yesterday, and the state is increasing its testing capacity each day.
The Governor is trying to ready the state for a continued increase in the numbers, probably for the next several days.
The ban on dining in at Massachusetts restaurants will likely leave tens of thousands of people temporarily unemployed. There are currently 300 thousand people working in restaurants across the state. Many restaurants are expected to close completely for the next few weeks, even though eateries are allowed to offer take out. A good number of restaurant workers will seek unemployment benefits, which only covers around half of an employee's weekly paycheck.
Governor Charlie Baker says we shouldn't worry much about the specifics between federal and state guidance regarding the Covid 19 virus. The federal guidance is to avoid crowds of 10 or more and the state guidance is 25 or more.
"The big message that everybody should take from this is that non-essential gatherings of any significant size, given the contagious nature of this particular virus, are just simply a bad idea," Baker said.
(Joshua Qualls/Governor's Press Office)