MA Recommends, But Doesn't Order, COVID-19 Precautions: Patch PM

MASSACHUSETTS — It's Friday, July 30. Here's what you should know this afternoon:

• Troy and Jayla Pina, two siblings from Seekonk are wrapping up their first Olympic experience - being the first two, and only two members of the Cape Verde Olympic swim team.
• Nearly a dozen hospitals in Massachusetts are considered among the best in the nation, according to a new ranking.
• Massachusetts State Police are investigating after a body was found on the side of the road on Route 1 in Lynnfield Friday morning.

Scroll down for more on those and other stories Patch has been covering in Massachusetts today.

Today's Top Story:

Updated state guidance released Friday recommends — but does not require — unvaccinated students and fully vaccinated adults with a compromised immune system, or those who live with someone at heightened risk of severe coronavirus symptoms, mask up while indoors in response to the emerging highly contagious Delta variant.

The Department of Elementary and Secondary Education said that, in response to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention information on the variant this week, it is "strongly recommended" that all students in grade 6 or younger wear facemasks while inside schools when the new academic year begins in about a month.

Read the full story.

Latest Updates On COVID-19 In MA: It Ain't Over Yet

The Baker administration is showing signs of reluctance to restore pandemic restrictions lifted earlier this year, even as case data shows the Delta variant of COVID-19 is fueling a coronavirus resurgence in Massachusetts, including the still-growing cluster stemming from Fourth of July weekend festivities in Provincetown.

That resurgence is coming about a month before the start of a school year that is supposed to look more normal than the past two academic years. Districts across the state are stepping up efforts to vaccinate students over the age of 12 before Massachusetts schools reopen in September. State and local health officials are continuing to offer incentives for people who get vaccinated, and this week Massachusetts announced its first round of Vaxmillions winners.

Some local governments and private businesses aren't waiting for the state to reimpose restrictions. The Middle East in Cambridge, for example, is going to require proof of vaccination from patrons before they enter the restaurant and nightclub. Somerville, meanwhile, is considering a vaccine mandate for city and school department staff.

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Friday's Other Top Stories

Best Massachusetts hospitals: Nearly a dozen hospitals in Massachusetts are considered among the best in the nation, according to a new ranking. The 2021-22 Best Hospitals rankings, released Tuesday by U.S. News and World Report, rates the best overall hospitals as well as others that consistently deliver the best care. To compile the rankings, U.S. News compared more than 4,750 medical centers nationwide in 15 specialties and 17 procedures and conditions including cardiology, neurology, geriatrics, orthopedics and more. See which hospitals made the list.

Body found near highway: Massachusetts State Police are investigating after a body was found on the side of the road on Route 1 in Lynnfield Friday morning. Police say they received a call from a driver who said they saw the body on the shoulder of Route 1 northbound, by the former Fat Cactus restaurant.

Eat fresh: Patch's 2021 Massachusetts Farmers Market Guide

Picture This

Cape Verde connection: Troy and Jayla Pina, two siblings from Seekonk are wrapping up their first Olympic experience - being the first two, and only two members of the Cape Verde Olympic swim team. The Pina family made history, completing their last race in the Tokyo Olympics Friday. This is the first year Cape Verde has participated in swimming events, as the country has only been included in Olympic events since 1996. So far, Cape Verde has never won an Olympic medal.

They Said It

"It's very important that we correct history and give the families of victims like Elizabeth closure."

• State Sen. Diana DiZoglio, who is trying to clear the name of a North Andover woman convicted of witchcraft during the infamous Salem witch trials of 1692. Although 22-year-old Elizabeth Johnson Jr. has been dead for more than 300 years, her name has not been forgotten.

In Case You Missed It

Bill would ban shock treatments at school: An effort to ban the use of electric shock devices in schools cleared its first hurdle in the U.S. House of Representatives Thursday. Language was added to a sweeping federal spending bill that would pull Department of Education funding from any institution using shock therapy. The legislation is aimed at one Massachusetts school: the Judge Rotenberg Educational Center in Canton, which is believed to be the only institution in the country that uses electric shocks on its students. Congresswoman Katherine Clark, who previously sued the school as an attorney for the Massachusetts Department of Early Education and Care, championed for the provision's inclusion in the bill.