The COVID-19 pandemic has now raged into its third year, with the highly-contagious omicron variant at the forefront. With the new strain of the virus and large group gatherings during the holiday season, hospitals, businesses, schools, and ambulance providers have been burdened with record-high case rates.
“We have certainly seen a significant increase in staff members not able to work due to COVID,” said Dennis Cataldo, president and CEO of the Cataldo Ambulance Service, a significant provider of emergency medical services on the North Shore. “We have been impacted significantly in the past three to four weeks by this latest surge.”
Currently, 15 to 20 percent of Cataldo’s workforce is out of work and in quarantine, Cataldo said, but the company, which also owns Atlantic Ambulance Service, is slowly seeing the numbers trend in a positive direction.
North Shore community leaders are faced with new challenges every day, and are enforcing mandates and testing protocols in order to keep residents safe as the case rates continue to rise.
LYNN
As of Friday, Lynn had a total of 25,869 cases, 222 of those being within 24 hours. Lynn has 250 deaths, with 69 percent of the city being fully vaccinated and 78 percent receiving their first dose.
Chief Executive Officer of Lynn Community Health Center Dr. Kiame Mahaniah said over the last two weeks, LCHC, like most healthcare institutions, has felt the impact of the most recent COVID-19 surge.
“At our worst, 15 percent of our staff were quarantined due to direct contact with an individual who had tested positive for COVID-19,” Mahaniah said. “It has severely impacted our ability to provide our range of services, as well as some of our hours of operation.”
LCHC has prioritized its testing trailers and Urgent Care capabilities and strongly recommends people get vaccinated to protect themselves and loved ones, and get closer to living a more normal life again.
“We remain committed to the Lynn community. We are still offering vaccines, both during regular visits and as dedicated hours,” Mahaniah said. “We are heartened by indications that this and next week represent the peak of this surge.”
Superintendent of Schools Dr. Patrick Tutwiler said at Thursday’s School Committee meeting that the district’s venture into the 2022 calendar year has presented predictable challenges related to the pandemic.
Tutwiler said he remains optimistic that the district’s safety protocols — monitoring for illness and staying home when ill, mask wearing, ventilation upgrades, cleaning and sanitizing, adhering to health and hygiene strategies at schools and providing vaccine opportunities to staff and students — will continue to allow for in-person learning.
“The holiday surge in cases has not spared our community,” said Tutwiler. “Nonetheless, schools remain open and in-person services continue. We believe we will be able to sustain this, and are following a robust, multi-layered set of protocols — the same that we proposed in the beginning of the school year.”
In addition, Tutwiler said the district has resumed weekly testing for students who have consented to such testing. This is being done in a staggered fashion, he said, and will expand to all schools next week.
“To be clear, positive COVID cases are inescapable,” he said. “Nonetheless, we can limit the spread by fidelity to the multi-layered approach (I have) described. And, where appropriate and necessary, we will close a classroom or other small, defined section to prevent the spread. This will continue to be done in consultation with the city’s health director, our liaison at the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, and as a last resort.”
According to the Lynn Public Schools COVID dashboard, there were 783 cases in the district for the week of Jan. 5 to 12.
City Health Director Michele Desmarais told the City Council on Tuesday that the vaccine clinics in Lynn are City Hall, North Shore Community College, Lynn Community Health Center (for registered patients), and Mass General Brigham.
She said testing is available at North Shore Community College, Lynn Community Health Center, Mass General Brigham and at the “Stop the Spread” Project Beacon site at 398 Blossom St., the latter of which will be available until March 31.
The city has an indoor-mask mandate in effect for public places.
“Health care is changing,” Desmarais said on Tuesday. “Health care will never be the way we remember it before 2020.”
LYNNFIELD
It’s good news and bad news in Lynnfield, where there has been slight improvement in some areas, but some numbers have still reached record levels; however, schools have seen significant improvement.
“Cautiously optimistic.”
That’s how Superintendent of Schools Kristen Vogel described the dropoff in COVID cases in the town’s schools.
“Our numbers are much improved over last week,” she said. “We are cautiously optimistic that we are on the other side of the surge. However, there are still many unknowns about what may happen with the variant.”
Data posted on the district’s COVID-19 dashboard this week show the total number of cases has leveled out and dropped significantly from a record high of 121 on Jan. 8, with 65 cases Monday, 69 cases Tuesday and 66 cases as of Thursday. Lynnfield High School saw its numbers drop from a high of 52 on Jan. 8 to just 16 as of Thursday, Jan. 13. As of the same date, there were 19 cases at Lynnfield Middle School, 15 cases at Huckleberry Hill School, 14 cases at Summer Street School and two cases in the preschool.
Town-wide however, the numbers were a mixed bag compared to Jan. 1. Data posted on the Lynnfield Office of Emergency Management website’s COVID-19 dashboard revealed that the town hit record highs on Jan. 10 with 279 cases over the last seven days; 518 cases over the last 14 days, 637 cases over the last 21 days and 699 cases over the last 28 days.
The good news is that the number of cases over the last two weeks dwindled steadily during the rest of the week. As of Thursday, Jan. 13, the town reported 181 cases over the last seven days and 437 cases over the last 14 days. Case numbers over the last 21 days and 28 days, however, continued to be record highs, with 652 cases and 762 cases, respectively.
The number of cases among children ages 0-9 increased slightly from 67 cases on Monday to 71 on Friday. The number of cases among residents ages 10-19 improved slightly, dropping from 94 on Monday to 86 on Thursday. Other age groups with lower numbers are 20-29 (61), 30-39 (52), 40-49 (57), 50-59 (50) and 70-79 (11). Slight increases were reported in the 60-69 age group (39) and 90-plus (5) while cases among residents 80-89 were unchanged with five cases.
MARBLEHEAD
As of the week of Jan.10, Marblehead Public Schools (MPS) has had a cumulative total of 62 positive COVID-19 cases. Sixty of these cases are from students, and two cases are from a staff member at Marblehead High. MPS provides pool testing, test-and-stay procedures and symptomatic testing. The high school uses BinaxNOW rapid antigen testing. There is an indoor-mask mandate for schools, businesses and municipal buildings, and all employees are required to wear a mask.
Marblehead residents are able to use testing sites in Lynn, including the “Stop the Spread” Project Beacon site on Blossom Street, North Shore Community College (NSCC), Lynn Community Health Center, and Mass General Brigham.
Salem State University will once again be establishing three vaccine clinics that Marblehead residents can use. The three clinics will run on Jan. 22, Jan. 29 and Feb. 5 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. in the South Campus Gymnasium on Harrison Road.
NAHANT
Nahant Public Health Nurse Deb Murphy said the town’s vaccination data has been “excellent.” Ninety-five percent of Nahant residents have received at least one dose of either the Pfizer, Moderna or Johnson & Johnson vaccine, and 84 percent of residents are fully vaccinated.
“I think our rates are so high thanks to our small population,” said Murphy.
In terms of booster data, Murphy said the town is succeeding in that area as well.
Thirty-three percent of residents ages 16-19 have a booster shot, along with 30 percent of residents 20-29 years old, 39 percent who are 30-49 years old, 56 percent who are 50-64 years old, 76 percent who are 65-70 years old and 70 percent who are 75 and older.
Nahant has an indoor-mask mandate that is required in municipal buildings, businesses and the Johnson Elementary School. Students partake in pool testing and test-and-stay procedures.
Nahant residents use testing sites in Lynn, including the “Stop the Spread” Project Beacon Site on Blossom Street, North Shore Community College (NSCC), Lynn Community Health Center, and Mass General Brigham.
In conjunction with Lynn, Nahant residents may get their vaccine doses Monday to Friday at Lynn City Hall. Murphy said Lynn officials helped to set up a one-time booster site at Nahant Town Hall last year.
“Thankfully it’s less than a five-minute drive to Lynn,” she said. “A lot of folks go to Walgreens and CVS to receive a vaccine, too.”
As of now, Nahant has 602 confirmed COVID-19 cases and only one death related to the virus.
Town Administrator Antonio Barletta said he will seek to buy rapid tests soon, as the town was not eligible for the distribution of kits in December.
PEABODY
Peabody’s COVID-19 cases have been on a steady rise since December, with the week between Christmas and New Year’s Day seeing a meteoric jump in positive tests.
During the week of Dec. 25, the city was seeing an average of 83.5 new daily cases. By Jan. 1, it was seeing 229.5. The most recent reporting, released on Jan. 8, showed another increase with 309.9 average cases per day, according to city Health Department data.
“It’s been pretty busy; there are a lot of cases,” said Peabody Health Director Sharon Cameron. “We’re just looking to get January over with and go back to our regular COVID caseload.”
According to the city’s two-week report, almost 8 percent of the total cases reported in Peabody were recorded in the past 14 days.
In response to the uptick in cases, the city’s Health Department has coordinated a number of testing initiatives in the first two weeks of 2022. The most recent data from the city reported 9,787 tests administered in the past two weeks.
The Health Department hosted testing clinics at Higgins Middle School on Saturday, Jan. 1 and Thursday, Jan. 13. It also provided over-the-counter test kits on Jan. 2 and 3 for public-school staff with the help of the Peabody Federation of Teachers (Local 1289). The city’s most recent vaccine clinic was held on Wednesday, Jan. 12.
While the omicron variant may be the biggest buzzword at the moment, the city is still chipping away at administering vaccine boosters to its residents. As of Jan. 8, the Health Department reported that 30 percent of people living in Peabody had received a booster shot.
While cognizant of the high rates of infectivity of the omicron variant, the city’s public schools made the decision over the winter break to allow its students to continue learning in person. This decision followed a Dec. 22 Board of Health mandate that required indoor-mask wearing in all buildings.
“I think there is a commitment to review the data and to lift the mandate at a time when it is appropriate to do so,” Cameron told the Item on Jan. 5. “We recognize that this does impose a hardship on local businesses, particularly businesses who are tasked with enforcing the mask mandate. It creates some very difficult interactions with their customers. It’s not a move that the Board of Health takes lightly.”
REVERE
As of Friday, Revere had a total of 19,694 COVID-19 cases — 152 of those cases being within 24 hours. The seven-day average case rate is at 280 cases, and the 14-day positivity rate in the city is 34.4 percent.
Revere has had a total of 180 deaths from COVID-19 since the start of the pandemic.
As of last week, 50,710 Revere residents had received their first dose of the vaccine, while 44,005, or 72 percent, were fully vaccinated. The city also has approximately 13,406 residents who have received booster shots as well.
“The city of Revere is closely monitoring the COVID-19 outbreak in Massachusetts and taking proactive steps to support containment efforts and prepare for further spread of the disease,” the city said.
City Hall does not have any at-home COVID tests, but testing is being done at Revere High School Monday through Friday from 4 to 8 p.m. and Saturdays from 7 to 11 a.m., depending on the weather.
“Please be patient, the demand is high,” the city said. “Revere Police and site staff reserve the right to cut off the line if it becomes too long.”
This testing site will be closed on Monday, Jan. 17 for Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
Mayor Brian Arrigo and the Revere Board of Health said the testing site will continue through March.
Testing is also available at Suffolk Downs, but is by appointment only. Appointments can be booked at www.beacontesting.com.
SALEM
Salem has seen a significant rise in cases over the last three to four weeks, said the city’s Health Agent David Greenbaum.
“The situation lately has been overwhelming,” Greenbaum said. “Most of the time, more than what we saw during the original height of the pandemic.”
Daily case numbers in Salem jumped into triple digits a few days after Christmas from 37-38 cases per day from Dec. 24 to 27, 2021 to 144 on Dec. 28 and 169 on Dec. 30, peaking at 202 on Jan. 6. On Thursday, there were 1,310 active COVID-19 cases in Salem compared to 31 on Jan. 12, 2021.
Greenbaum said the city has procured rapid antigen test kits to distribute to certain businesses, to all Salem’s social-service agencies, low-income housing developments, housing-authority properties as well as the schools and daycare facilities. To increase testing options, Salem has set up its own testing for residents.
“We’re looking to try and increase vaccinations in the city with additional vaccination efforts,” said Greenbaum.
The city’s overall vaccination rate is at 69.5 percent.
Salem’s Board of Health reinstituted the mask mandate in December and a requirement for proof of vaccination will go into effect on Saturday, Jan. 15 for restaurants with indoor dining, gyms, fitness centers, sporting arenas, event venues, indoor sporting events, haunted houses, museums and so on.
“With the rapid rise in COVID-19 cases following the holidays, we are working hard to put in place measures to help Salem residents protect themselves and their loved ones,” said Mayor Kimberley Driscoll. “Please get tested if you need a test, get vaccinated and boosted if you’re not already, and continue to wear a mask when around others. Together we can help keep one another safe, reduce the likelihood of additional spread of the virus, and lessen the significant burden currently facing our hospitals and frontline healthcare workers.”
There has been an increase in cases in the Salem schools, similar to the rest of the city and the commonwealth, Greenbaum said. During the first week of school in January, 130 students and 25 staff members tested positive for COVID-19.
“They are doing an immense job with contact tracing and case investigation,” Greenbaum said.
Schools have been providing rapid antigen tests to staff and students. A proof of vaccination will be required at Salem schools in addition to masks to attend sporting or extracurricular activities, effective Jan. 15 as well.
Greenbaum said that Salem is still on the upswing with the omicron variant and in his opinion, the trend will start going down around the end of January to early February.
“Hopefully, we continue to see it go down and get through this; this particular wave. It’s been like nothing I have seen throughout the entire pandemic,” said Greenbaum, referring to the rise in new cases and contagiousness of the omicron variant.
Vaccinations are really doing what they were meant to do, Greenbaum said, because the medical professionals are not seeing as much severe illness and as much death. As of Jan. 12, 104 Salem residents have died of COVID-19 since the beginning of the pandemic.
Salem Hospital spokesperson Laura Fleming said that the majority of patients with more serious respiratory symptoms of COVID-19 are unvaccinated.
“The number of COVID-positive patients has been rising quickly,” Fleming said. “We are seeing extraordinary demand on the hospital, our emergency room, urgent-care facilities and physician offices as is the entire health system across the commonwealth and country.”
One month ago, on Dec. 14, 2021, the hospital had 23 COVID-positive patients, while on Jan. 12 this number rose to 91, which constitutes a quarter to one third of all hospitalized patients, Fleming said. For comparison, in 2020 the hospital’s highest single day census of COVID-positive patients was 116 on April 17, 2020. During the second surge last winter, the highest number of hospitalized COVID-19 patients amounted to 79 on Jan. 16, 2021.
Salem Hospital has been working closely with its colleagues across the Mass General Brigham system to manage demand. The hospital, as well as other affiliates of Mass General Brigham, has been postponing non-urgent care and surgeries, sharing resources and streamlining operations to support one another, Fleming said.
“Staffing has been a significant challenge not only because of existing vacancies but also because we have a number of staff who have contracted or been exposed to COVID recently and need to be out to recover and/or quarantine,” said Fleming.
The hospital provides onsite staff testing to identify cases quickly and support return-to-work protocols. While some staff members are out, others pitch in to cover for one another and care for patients.
“It is imperative that our community remains vigilant about getting vaccinated and boosted, wearing masks and maintaining social distance so we can keep our staff healthy to care for all who turn to us, not only for COVID-related care but also for heart attacks, stroke care, trauma care and so on,” Fleming said.
Patients with minor COVID-19 symptoms or those looking for a COVID-19 test should avoid using the emergency room for care, as current wait times can run very long and the staff are often occupied with more serious concerns.
Patients are better off to use urgent care, testing centers and their doctor’s offices for less serious concerns.
To protect staff, all patients are tested for COVID-19 upon admission to the hospital. The number of visitors a patient may have has been reduced to one per day.
“The omicron variant is extremely transmissible but if we all do our part, we can weather this surge,” said Fleming.
SAUGUS
Saugus implemented an indoor-mask mandate on Jan. 6 in wake of the surge of the omicron virus and will keep this in effect until March 7.
The town is also hosting another vaccine clinic on Jan. 20 from 1 to 5 p.m. at the Saugus Senior Center at 466 Central St.
“Saugus will continue to prioritize the health and safety of our residents and look for ways to expand access to the vaccinations,” Town Manager Scott Crabtree said. “Access and availability to the COVID-19 vaccinations continues to be a priority of this administration.”
Saugus Public Schools is hosting testing programs, with parents’ consent. Through this program, students who are showing symptoms of COVID-19 at school may be tested and undergo routine COVID safety checks to prevent the spread of the virus undetected among students who are not showing symptoms. A test-and-stay program is being used for unvaccinated students who may have been exposed while in school but are not showing symptoms.
“It is our hope that these measures will work together to keep our schools safe and your student(s) in school,” said the District Nurse Leader Sandy Moynihan and Superintendent of Schools Erin McMahon.
SWAMPSCOTT
Swampscott did not receive any rapid tests from the state, said Public Health Director Jeff Vaughan. There have been 217 new COVID-19 cases in the town, confirmed with a PCR test, since last Thursday. The peak number of new cases at 245 fell during the week of Jan. 2 to Jan. 8, which is almost triple the peak number of 2021’s weekly new cases.
The actual numbers could be double or triple that amount, said Vaughan, taking into account the number of people who self-test with rapid home kits.
“We can’t keep up with regular contact tracing,” said Vaughan. “We have to manage what’s most important to us, which is the school-age kids and communal areas.”
He said that this department gets a lot of inquiries from daycare centers and such, as they wait for more thorough written regulations from the state.
Swampscott’s statistics show that there is a high vaccination rate among adults — more than 90 percent between the ages of 16 and 74 — with the total full vaccination rate in the town at 87 percent. However, only 46 percent of the town’s vaccinated residents received their booster shot.
“Since the vaccines for most people have been given out more than five months ago, they are due for a booster, and they are highly recommended to get one,” Vaughan said.
Among Swampscott children 5 to 11 years old, 66 percent have been vaccinated so far, while the vaccination rate of those ages 12 to 15 is at 92 percent.
So far, Swampscott is not planning on introducing the vaccination-proof requirement, Vaughan said.
In his COVID-19 update during the Select Board meeting, Town Administrator Sean Fitzgerald encouraged Swampscott residents to wear masks, practice social distancing and take responsibility to self-quarantine.
“We are really worried about folks who are vulnerable,” said Fitzgerald.
A total of 22 residents have died from COVID-19 in Swampscott over the course of the pandemic.
Item staff writers Adam Bass, Allysha Dunnigan, Alena Kuzub, Anne Marie Tobin and Sophie Yarin contributed to this report.
