BOSTON (AP) - Massachusetts on Monday made about 800,00O additional residents eligible to receive a coronavirus vaccine and relaxed restrictions on many business and public events.
Residents age 60 to 64 as well as hundreds of thousands of workers in essential industries including supermarkets, restaurants, public transit and funeral homes can now book a vaccine appointment.
In good news for sports fans, Gillette Stadium, TD Garden, and Fenway Park can welcome back fans up to 12% capacity after submitting a plan to the state Department of Public Health.
People coming to Massachusetts including visitors and residents returning home are now required to quarantine for 10 days upon arrival if they have been out of the state for longer than a 24-hour period. The advisory does not apply to people who are fully vaccinated.
Gov. Charlie Baker relaxed the restrictions despite advice from a coalition of public health officials urging a delay in reopening limits, saying there is a danger of another surge.
Also Monday, the state’s latest mass vaccination site at the Hynes Convention Center in Boston’s Back Bay became fully operational after a soft launch last week.
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VIRUS BY THE NUMBERS
The number of newly confirmed cases of COVID-19 increased by about 1,100 on Monday, while the number of newly confirmed coronavirus deaths in Massachusetts rose by 27.
The new numbers push the state’s confirmed COVID-19 death toll to 16,558 since the start of the pandemic, while its confirmed caseload rose to more than 580,000.
The true number of cases is likely higher because studies suggest some people can be infected and not feel sick.
There were about 600 people reported hospitalized Monday because of confirmed cases of COVID-19, with about 140 in intensive care units.
The average age of those hospitalized was 61. There were an estimated 27,000 people with current, active cases of COVID-19 in the state.
The number of probable or confirmed COVID-19 deaths reported in long-term care facilities rose to 8,856.
More than 2.9 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine have been administered in Massachusetts, including more than 1.8 million first doses and 1 million second doses.
More than 1 million people have been fully immunized.
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