Protesters Shut Down Vote On Somerville Vaccine Mandate

SOMERVILLE, MA — A vote on a vaccine mandate at some businesses was postponed once again in Somerville, this time after a group of protesters disrupted the Board of Health meeting on Friday.

The proposal, which would require proof of vaccination at most indoor public spaces, including restaurants, event venues and gyms, went before the board on Friday. It was the second time the board considered a vaccine mandate, opting in December to delay the vote a month while it monitored the trajectory of COVID-19 cases over the holidays.

A potential mandate has been met with pushback from some business owners, residents and local officials, who raised concerns about additional staffing costs for businesses. On Friday, opponents of the proposal appeared to win out, at least temporarily.

Jack Perenick, vice president of the Massachusetts chapter of Young Democrats of America, tweeted that those who did not attend Friday's meeting "missed a group of protesters shouting down the MD on the BoH and becoming so disorderly the meeting had to adjourn without deliberating or voting."

The tweet was shared by Ward 3 City Councilor Ben Ewen-Campen, who said he was "very sorry to see opponents of common-sense public health policies, including @SomervilleChamb, resort to misleading delay and disruption tactics."

Stephen Mackey, president of the Somerville Chamber of Commerce, told Patch he is pushing for a public hearing on the matter. While public comment has been allowed at the Board of Health meetings, these do not constitute public hearings, where "people get to speak directly to the decision-makers," Mackey said.

"That's important because it is about science and data, health and medicine. It's also about implementation," he said.

Mackey said the proposal could have some unintended consequences, such as empowering people to receive personal information about minors without proper vetting. He also has questions about the success of the city's vaccine mandate for its own employees, as well as who authored the order.

"We're just being handed it," he said. "We want everyone to be safe, but we have to think through some of these public health actions."

Some businesses have already imposed their own vaccine standards voluntarily, but Mackey believes the order will place a strain on others.

"There will be others that go out of business, close their doors, some who can shift to takeout," he said. "Others will struggle along, but it'll be even harder to staff up because employees will find another job."

Denise Taylor, a spokesperson for the mayor's office, said a vote on the mandate is expected to be held this week after the Board of Health took public comment and briefly deliberated on Friday.

"Meanwhile, the city is focused on an all out COVID response on all fronts in addition to requesting this mandate be passed in order to slow spread of the virus, help protect our healthcare system from overload, keep businesses open, and save lives," Taylor wrote in an email.

That includes the launch of a new testing site in East Somerville at the Igreja Internacional da Graça de Deus (International Church of the Grace of God), 85 Washington Street, and a pop-up site Connexion, 149 Broadway, both of which opened on Saturday.

"Today we opened new COVID testing sites that will conduct more than 1,500 free COVID PCR tests per week for Somerville residents and workers," Mayor Katjana Ballantyne said in a statement. "We are seeing a steady flow of residents at both testing sites doing the right thing by getting tested when needed. We are grateful that so many are willing to do their part. Together, we will get to the other side of this surge."