Gov. Charlie Baker says that as COVID-19 cases rise in Massachusetts and around the country, the state is "nowhere near the uncharted territory we were at in the spring" and medical facilities will be ready for any additional surge in patients.
"The health care system is far more prepared to deal with and to manage these issues now than they were back in the spring. We've been talking to them almost daily about what the best way for us to support them as we go forward," Baker said Thursday.
The governor's comments came as the number of Massachusetts's coronavirus cases continues to climb steadily. The state reported on Wednesday that nearly 2500 people had tested positive for COVID-19 — the highest spike since April. Earlier this week, the governor said Massachusetts was in its second coronavirus surge.
Baker said he will make an announcement Friday about reopening field hospitals to help handle cases of COVID-19 that can't be filled by traditional hospitals. In the spring, the state's field hospitals mostly served homeless populations and those stepping down from hospital care.
Baker gave his daily coronavirus update after a visit to a school in Carlisle to see how students and staff are adapting to learning during the pandemic.
"The classrooms themselves, it's pretty obvious that you use in every single square inch of space that's available in those classrooms to create the kind of distance you want to create for the kids," Baker said. The governor has pushed local schools to resume as much in-person learning as possible this school year, saying that schools are not a large source of transmission in the state.
"Every child we saw as we wandered through there was wearing a mask and didn't seem all that stressed about it, which makes them a lot more mature than many of the adults that I know," Baker added.
