Updated at 2:00 p.m.
Gov. Charlie Baker Monday urged recent protesters to get tested for COVID-19, asking them to take advantage of 52 new, free pop-up testing sites across the commonwealth this week. The sites will operate Wednesday, June 17 and Thursday, June 18, he said.
The appeal comes as Massachusetts enters its second week of Phase 2 of Baker's 4-phase re-opening plan, following nearly two months of quarantine. Baker said state data continue to trend in the right direction, but that doesn’t mean a resurgence is out of the realm of possibility.
“Obviously there’s been a significant increase in the number of people participating in demonstrations across Massachusetts and around the country,” Baker said, referencing the massive, widespread protests against racism and police brutality in the last two weeks. “These gatherings are coinciding with re-opening, meaning more and more people are moving around with each other.”
“It’s not the first time we’ve seen protesting and demonstrations during the pandemic, but it’s certainly been the largest number of participants, and anytime large groups of people come together, there’s a risk for transmission.” he added.
The testing sites are a combination of hospitals, community health centers and appointment-only CVS pharmacy stores. State officials encouraged those looking to be tested to call ahead to determine whether appointments are needed.
As of Sunday, Baker said, more than 700,000 people across the commonwealth have been tested for COVID-19.
Over the weekend the state reported about 500 new cases from about 9,000 tests. Roughly 1,000 people remain hospitalized due to the disease, Baker added, which represents a 70 percent decrease since mid-April, when the state’s stay-at-home advisory was still in place.
“Our progress to date is encouraging, but it doesn’t mean the virus has left town,” Baker said. “Until there’s a medical breakthrough with a treatment or a vaccine, it’s up to all of us to continue to do the things that we know can kill COVID. Face-coverings, hand-washing, distancing, monitoring for symptoms and getting tested when appropriate is how we fight COVID-19 and continue to re-open Massachusetts.”
Officials said testing is open to everyone and results will be confidential.