Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker said Thursday that the state is making progress in its fight against COVID-19, but there is still a long way to go. Baker also gave an update on the state’s contact tracing initiative and urged residents to pick up the phone if contacted.
Baker said 6,300 people were tested for COVID-19 Wednesday, bringing the state’s total number to 340,000. About 5 percent of those with the virus have been hospitalized.
Despite some signs that the numbers are trending in the right direction, the governor added, “I want to remind everyone that we’re still very much in the fight.”
Baker also gave an update on the Massachusetts Community Tracing Collaborative, a collaboration between the state’s Department of Public Health, local boards of health and the nonprofit organization Partners in Health.
Read more: Massachusetts Contact Tracing Team Comes Online This Week
The governor emphasized that the program’s goal is to make sure anyone who has tested positive has what they need to isolate and that whomever has been in close contact with someone who has tested positive also has what they need to isolate.
Baker said that the collaborative has contacted nearly 14,000 confirmed COVID-19 cases and has reached out to more than 7,500 of those people's contacts in the last month.
Baker urged residents to pick up the phone if they receive a call. The call will come from an 833 or 857 number and will say “MA COVID TEAM,” he said. Callers will also leave voice mails and text messages in an effort to make contact, and calls will be available in English and other languages, including Spanish, Portuguese and Chinese.
“It’s vital that you take that call,” Baker added. “This call is your chance to fight back against COVID-19.”
