City of Revere Response to COVID-19: May 1, 2020 Update
May 1, 2020
Mayor Arrigo Announces Expanded Access to Masks, Testing for Residents
This Weekend: Pop-Up Mask Distribution in High Traffic Areas
Grab-and-Go Mask Operation Begins Tuesday
All Revere Residents Can Access Drive-Through Testing at Suffolk Downs
May 1, 2020 – The City of Revere’s Emergency Response Team continues to take proactive steps to slow community transmission of COVID-19 and establish strategies for longer-term recovery efforts. As of May 1, the Revere Board of Health has been notified by the Massachusetts Department of Public Health of 1,185 positive cases of COVID-19 in the City of Revere. Forty residents have died; 297 have recovered.
Today Mayor Arrigo announced the City will expand resident access to masks through an ongoing, grab-and-go program and a series of pop-up distributions in high traffic areas throughout the city which will begin this weekend. Starting Tuesday morning, residents in need of a mask will be able to walk- or drive-up to the Rumney Marsh Academy between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. and receive a cloth, reusable mask sewn by volunteers for nonprofit partner MACIR (Moroccan American Connections in Revere), as well as vinyl gloves and alcohol swabs. Today Governor Baker issued an order requiring all Massachusetts residents to wear a face covering when in public -- including in essential businesses, outdoors and on public transportation.
“We believe the most effective way to get widespread participation from our residents is by removing any barriers they may face, rather than taking punitive action,” Mayor Arrigo said. “Starting Tuesday, any Revere resident in need of a mask can get one. We’re grateful to our partners at MACIR for making this a possibility for our city.”
The City’s mask supply includes both reusable and disposable masks. To-date, MACIR has provided the City of Revere with 2,500 cloth masks, with a goal of producing 1,000 masks per week moving forward.
“When this pandemic began, our organization stopped all of our regular activities and planning for one of the biggest festivals in the City. We reached out to the Mayor to see how we could shift our focus to help,” said Rachid Moukhabir, Founder and Executive Director of MACIR. “As soon as we realized how much our city needed these masks, it became our top priority and we’ve been working hard to provide as much as we can since.”
The mask production effort is being led by MBA student and intern Maria Choukri and is in need of additional volunteers. Anyone interested in contributing to or volunteering with MACIR should visit the Go Fund Me page or contact Rachid Moukhabir at 617-386-3450.
Expanded Testing for Revere Residents
The City also announced today expanded access to testing for Revere residents through the East Boston Neighborhood Health Center. Individuals should call 617-569-5800 and follow prompts to register for testing. There is no need to schedule an appointment time. Individuals should confirm verbally on the phone that an order has been placed for their test. The process takes about 10 minutes to sign up, and a link to check results will be text messaged. The walk thru at 79 Paris Street is from 8am-12pm and the drive thru at Suffolk Downs (525 William F McClellan Highway) is from 1-5pm. Testing is 7 days per week. It should take 1-2 days to receive results.