PEABODY— Despite public opposition and concerns voiced during a Zoom meeting Wednesday night, the city’s Board of Health unanimously voted to implement a temporary indoor-mask mandate.
The mandate requires those entering any public indoor area to wear a mask, and that business employees must wear masks as well.
The mask mandate will go into effect on Monday, Dec. 27 and will remain in effect until further notice.
Board of Health Chairman Thomas J. Durkin III said he supports the mandate, due to the rise of the omicron variant in Peabody. He worried that the virus’s high infection rate will make it harder for the city to mitigate the spread.
“The trends are the thing I am concerned about,” said Durkin. “I think acting now to stop the spread is important.”
Sharon Cameron, director of the Department of Health and Human Services, presented data that showed increasing cases in the city. The average number of new daily cases over the past 14 days in Peabody was 78 cases per 100,000 residents. The city has recorded 611 new cases, and a 7.38-percent positivity rate. Cameron pointed out that Peabody’s positivity rate was higher than the state’s.
“We are dealing with a variant that is highly transmissible,” said Cameron. “That is why we need more mitigations in place.”
Cameron was also concerned over the lack of hospital beds at Lahey Medical Center, and said the hospital could face an overflow of patients.
Members of the public who participated in the call agreed that the city should be cautious, but argued that a blanket mandate would not help in the long run.
David Cutler, a business owner in Peabody, said he thinks that under a mask mandate, local businesses could see staff members quit for not wanting to comply, or customers would move to other towns to buy products. Cutler proposed that the city could help by creating grants for air-circulation programs for businesses.
“I think it is scary that cases are rising, but I think a blanket mask mandate is ineffective,” said Cutler. “Maybe we should think about creating grants for ventilation? That’s a way we can help mitigate the spread and keep our businesses around.”
Ward 5 Councilor-elect David Gamache agreed with Cutler, and said that he has heard concerns from other business owners about a mask mandate. Gamache said that he is concerned about hospitalizations, but argued that vaccinated residents should choose whether they want to wear a mask.
“Shame on those for not getting boosted,” Gamache said. “If you want to wear a mask, use one, but it would be best not to issue a mandate.”
Board member Dr. Julia Fleet said she understands the worries of Cutler and Gamache, but said there is no data to confirm that a mask mandate would hurt businesses.
“I don’t know how much of a deterrent a mask mandate will be, if any at all,” Fleet said.
Peabody Mayor Edward A. Bettencourt Jr. spoke in favor of the mask mandate during the call, and said this is a necessary step to stop the spread of COVID-19.
“I hoped we were beyond this but here we are now,” Bettencourt said. “I do think at this moment where these numbers are, we need to do this measure.”
Bettencourt cited Mayor Michelle Wu as another leader who took measures to mitigate the spread of COVID-19, by installing an indoor-mask and vaccine mandate in Boston on Monday.
Unlike Wu, Bettencourt said he does not support a vaccine mandate.
