Barnstable County Continues to Respond to COVID-19
BARNSTABLE COUNTY
REGIONAL EMERGENCY PLANNING COMMITTEE
SUPERIOR COURT HOUSE
POST OFFICE BOX 427
BARNSTABLE, MA 02630
BCREPC Media Release
Barnstable County Regional Emergency Planning Committee
Media Release 009 – COVID-19
May
For Immediate Release
Barnstable County Continues to Respond to COVID-19
BARNSTABLE (MA) May 1, 2020 – The Barnstable County Regional Emergency Planning Committee (BCREPC) held a conference call on Thursday, April 30, 2020, at 4:00 p.m. to review the current COVID-19 conditions and discussed updates to response efforts in the county. Individuals present on the call included over 100 representatives from agencies across Cape Cod’s 15 towns and Nantucket, including elected officials, representatives from Cape Cod Healthcare, Town Health Agents, and several nonprofits engaged in responding to COVID-19.
Updates and guidance
The Massachusetts Department of Public Health reported a total of 860 positive cases of COVID-19 and 43 fatalities in Barnstable County at the time of this call.
BCREPC Multi-Agency Coordination Center (MACC) continues to operate as a limited activation in response to COVID-19 from 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. daily. The MACC remains focused on its efforts to assist with resource requests from various agencies across Cape Cod, especially for personal protective equipment (PPE). There have been over 800 order requests to MEMA since March 10. To date, the MACC continues to arrange truck deliveries of supplies to Police and Fire Departments, group homes, long-term care facilities, public health departments, primary care physicians, dentists, and more.
The MACC also continues to support and handle resource requests at the COVID-19 test site at Cape Cod Community College. Since testing began on March 17, 2020, a total of 2,493 vehicles have driven through with patients scheduled for testing. The site’s hours of operation are now Monday through Saturday, 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Sen. Julian Cyr, D-Truro, provided updates on the region’s newly drafted guidelines for seasonal Cape and Islands visitors and seasonal workers, and emphasized the goal of having a uniform approach.
The Cape Cod and the Islands Regional Network on Homelessness, with a membership of approximately 30 individuals representing the state, county and local government, social service providers, housing agencies, faith-based organizations, the business community, reported their on-going weekly meetings addressing the needs of the homeless population. To date, there have been 22 individuals who have stayed at a hotel in the hotel program; there is a 25-person capacity in total.
Since April 22 the mobile shower and sanitation site have been successfully operating at the Duffy Health Center in Hyannis. While there have been minimal sessions for showers thus far, staff at the site have engaged many others seeking a range of services.
As St. Joseph’s Homeless Shelter expects to accept additional people facing homelessness, plans are underway for the universal testing of 30 current residents and 20 staff and will have systems in place to test newcomers. Those who test negative will be able to isolate with the hotel program.
The three step-down surge sites are fully operational, however there has not been significant influx. The Royal Falmouth Nursing and Rehabilitation Center currently has patients in the single digits, the Wingate Nursing Home in Brewster had one discharge and is now at zero, and Joint Base Cape Cod has yet to have any patients admitted.
Judy Walden Scarafile, Managing Director of the Major Crisis Relief Fund (MCRF), reported over 850 requests for financial assistance over the last four weeks and encourages residents who have been financially impacted by COVID-19 and need help with lost income, food, rent, and more, to contact them at majorcrisisrelieffund.org. Cash donations also continue to be accepted.
The Regional Transit Authority has adjusted bus schedules to accommodate passengers to the Family Food Pantry where curbside pickup is available. Health Agents from the 15 municipalities continue to hold remote meetings weekly to stay in communication and address developments.
The BCREPC wants to ensure that Barnstable County residents know that a coordinated response continues to take place in our region. They ask the public to help slow the spread by limiting movement outside of their homes beyond what is necessary to take care of essentials. The BCREPC encourages all citizens to wear a mask, maintain a physical distance of at least 6 feet, and wash hands for at least 20 seconds. For more information, visit www.barnstablecountyhealth.org/
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