Massachusetts families who lost someone to COVID-19 are frustrated that Beacon Hill has yet to pass legislation to honor them. A bill filed in September calls for the first Monday of March to be "COVID-19 Remembrance Day." The bill is currently treading water, and families impacted by the virus are offended that the day has already come and gone without any official commemoration.
Iris O’Connor’s mother, Helen Gutierrez, was among those who died from COVID-19. The 63-year-old social worker died in her sleep in July 2020, and tested positive for the virus posthumously. Her last photo was a selfie taken while wearing a mask, and O’Connor’s last text to her mother went unanswered.
“She gave more than herself to everything that she did,” said O’Connor. “And she was just, she was so funny. We watched 'I Love Lucy' growing up, and she would have, she just had these amazing facial expressions. So I miss her sense of humor, and her candor, her wit.”
O’Connor wants to see her loss codified in some way into state law, and she said creating Remembrance Day is the best way to do it.
The bill was filed by democratic representatives Natalie Blais and Mindy Domb last fall, and had a hearing in November. The day would memorialize those who lost their lives, honor the suffering of COVID-19 survivors and recognize the efforts of volunteers and essential workers.
Since the proposed day wouldn't be an official state holiday — when banks, post offices and other businesses close — it wouldn't come at a cost to the state or taxpayers. And it has bipartisan support, including legislators like Minority Leader Bradley Jones. The Joint Committee on State Administration and Regulatory Oversight was supposed to give the thumbs up or down to move the bill forward by February. That deadline has now been pushed back to April 5, leaving residents like O’Connor feeling ignored.
“Just get it done. It's not rocket science. And if they don't understand, I'm happy to recommend the books about grief so that they could start to understand what it's like to be in this limbo and looking for any kernel of closure that they can find,” she said.
Jennifer Ritz Sullivan lost her mother to the virus and is an advocate with Marked By COVID, a nonprofit group promoting the bill, which she called "stagnant."
“I don’t think folks in the Massachusetts COVID community were aware that it’s been stalled. They just assumed like, that’s the bill process," she said. "I understand bills take a long time; however, it’s not a heavy lift."
The grief doesn’t go away, said Jaclyn Winer, whose father Keith Jacobs died of COVID-19 in April 2020, while in the final stages of getting a kidney transplant. The loss is still fresh. Winer said her son, born in October 2021, is his namesake and a living memory of his grandfather.
Winer said she gets a sense from legislators and the general public that there’s skepticism as to whether a memorial is necessary.
“Or are we done here? Like have we done enough for these families. And I would argue that we’re not done,” she said.
Rep. Blais said it’s important to remember the bill was a late file and that Beacon Hill leadership worked to get the hearing scheduled quickly. She sees the extension to April as a positive sign.
“I view the fact that it was extended as a sign that the committee needs more time for consideration, especially given the fact that, in addition to being a late file, it was the first time this legislation has ever been filed,” she said. “This additional time allows the committee to hear from more residents about why we need this bill: for all the reasons you’ve heard. I am hopeful that they have also shared their stories directly with the committee.”
But others aren't sure the legislature is putting enough effort into seeking input from impacted families or the general public.
Shayna Parker works for the Children’s League of Massachusetts and has her ear to the ground on policy initiatives on Beacon Hill. But she didn’t hear about this one until a GBH News tweet asking for people to comment on the bill's stalling. And she’s invested: her 91-year-old grandfather died from the virus in April 2020.
“It should be a bigger deal than it is,” she said. After reading GBH News’ December story on the bill, she said she was “shocked” it hasn't moved through the legislation faster. “I’ve just been pretty upset because to me, this is a priority," she said, adding that she read the bill and found it to be straightforward and without contentious language.
Parker said she’s going to reach out to her legislators, Rep. Michael Moran and Sen. William Brownsberger, to see if they will support the bill. She also likes the fact that the legislation seeks to honor essential workers, like the home health and nursing home workers who helped her grandfather in his final days.
“I think some of the nursing home staff definitely deserve accolades because that was not a safe environment for them,” she said.
Parker didn’t get to say goodbye to her grandfather, since nursing homes were closed to visitors, and they couldn’t hold a memorial due to lockdown measures at the time. She understands that was necessary to stem the spread of the virus.
“But in exchange for that pain and sacrifice, families like mine are just asked to return to normal? What normal?” she said. “Normal is just a hollow slogan for folks that never took the pandemic seriously in the first place.”
