NAHANT — Given the rise in COVID-19 cases, the town will be instituting an indoor-mask policy, which begins on Friday.
“The indoor-mask policy will require that you wear a mask in all indoor spaces that are open to the public,” said Town Administrator Antonio Barletta. “In Nahant, that would be our restaurants, convenience stores, function halls, and indoor public spaces of that nature.”
Nahant Public Health Department Nurse Deb Murphy said that the number of COVID cases in the town has increased dramatically, with 76 confirmed cases from Dec. 20 to Jan. 1. On Wednesday, the town had 14 new cases alone. In comparison, in December of 2020 the town had only 50 total cases.
“The numbers are exploding exponentially,” said Board of Selectmen Chair Josh Antrim. “I for one think we need to implement a mask mandate in all public places as quickly as we possibly can.
“We are a small town but our numbers are crazy right now,” Murphy added. “I think that’s one more way we can help. I know we can’t stop the spread anymore — that term has come and gone. That is not possible, but I think this is a measure that we can take to help mitigate it.”
The policy also states that the town will provide signage for businesses, as well as a direct line of contact with the town’s public-health agent for any possible enforcement issues.
“We want to make sure that they feel the town is supporting them on the implementation of the policy,” said Barletta in regards to the town’s businesses.
Barletta said that while there is no end date for the indoor-mask mandate, the town will continue to monitor case numbers. The biggest concern is capacity issues at local hospitals, he added.
