News Flash

COVID-19 Data

• According to public health data from the MA Department of Public Health (DPH) released last week, the Town’s designation is “yellow” indicating a “medium risk” of spread in the community. 
• The average daily incidence rate for the Town of Hingham is 64.0 per 100,000 residents, slightly down from 70.8 the prior week.
• According to DPH, there have been 215 new cases of COVID-19 in the community over the past 14 days. There have been a total of 1,242 cases in Hingham since the start of the pandemic.
• As of today, confirmed COVID-19 cases in Massachusetts had climbed to 481,617.
• Please continue to avoid high risk activities, especially indoor social gatherings.  In addition, all Massachusetts residents remain under orders from the Governor to wear masks at all times while in public. 

Vaccine Rollout

• This week, the Town is continuing to hold vaccination clinics for home health care workers and non-COVID-facing health care workers as part of Phase 1 of the state’s vaccine rollout plan.  
• The Town is also ready to begin holding vaccination clinics for Phase 2 individuals as soon as we receive sufficient vaccine supplies from the state. 
• Earlier this week, the Baker-Polito Administration announced updates to plans for Phase Two, which will begin on Monday, February 1^st. 
• Individuals 75 years or older will now be the first priority group in Phase 2; individuals 65 years and older and individuals with two comorbidities are now the second priority group in Phase 2.  
• We understand and recognize that these vaccines are important to so many of our residents, and we will continue to keep the community updated on the progress of vaccine distribution as part of Phases 2 and 3.  
• As we receive additional vaccine supplies from the state, we will communicate via our official website, social media channels, the local press, email blasts and more to schedule people for appointments. 
• Additionally, the Town’s Elder Services Department will be conducting outreach to our senior population to ensure they are made aware of clinics and to provide assistance with registration if needed. 
• Much of the guidelines and vaccine distribution capabilities are controlled by the state DPH, and we encourage all residents to continue to follow the state’s official COVID-19 website for the most up-to-date information. This page can be found by visiting mass.gov and clicking on the COVID-19 link.  Many questions can be answered on this page. 
• Anyone with questions about how to get a vaccine should visit mass.gov/COVIDvaccine to find their phase and priority group. 
• Those with questions about the vaccine may also contact the state by emailing COVID-19-Vaccine-Plan-MA@mass.gov.
• We appreciate the public’s patience during this very difficult and busy time for us all. 
• As always, residents are encouraged to visit the Hingham Town website for information on current data and resources. That site is hingham-ma.gov/COVID19. 
• Lastly, anyone with questions about the vaccine who was unable to find the information they needed online can email the Hingham Health Department at CovidQuestions@hingham-ma.gov.