►
From YouTube: COVID-19 Media Availability 8/18/20
Description
Mayor Walsh hosts a media availability to discuss updates relating to COVID-19.
B
Thank
you
very
much
in
massachusetts.
The
latest
covert
numbers,
as
of
yesterday
213
new,
confirmed
cases
bringing
the
total
to
114
611,
confirmed
cases.
There
were
four
debts
yesterday,
bringing
the
massachusetts
debt
total
to
8611.
B
B
We
had
no
new
debts
today
in
boston,
thank
god,
and
our
debt
total
remains
at
746,
and
our
thoughts
and
prayers
go
out
to
the
family.
Members
of
the
families
that
are
struggling
with
covet
and
who
have
lost
loved
ones
as
well.
B
B
B
We
continue
to
increase
both
the
numbers
of
tests
and
access
to
tests
across
the
city.
We
have
maintained
over
20
active
testing
sites
for
the
last
full
week
of
analyzed
data.
We
had
over
1600
daily
daily
tests
up
from
8.6
compared
to
the
previous
week,
so
we
are
doing
lots
more
testing
here
in
the
city.
B
Our
mobile
testing
teams
have
played
a
role
in
increasing
both
the
capacity
and
the
access
to
testing
in
our
neighborhoods,
we're
offering
testing
to
anyone
who
wants
it
at
no
cost
and
regardless,
if
you
are
symptomatic
or
not
at
moakley
park
in
south
boston.
Over
the
last
two
weeks,
the
team
performed
more
than
3
000
tests
in
moakley
park,
starting
this
thursday
august
20th.
That
team
will
be
moved
over
to
jubilee
christian
church
in
mattapan.
B
The
site
will
have
walk-through
testing
and
parking
for
those
arriving
by
car.
The
mattapan
pop-up
will
run
this
week
from
the
20th
of
august
through
saturday
august
22nd
and
next
week
from
tuesday
august
25th
through
saturday
august
29th.
You
can
find
more
information
about
this
and
including
hours
for
testing
anywhere
in
the
city.
Go
to
boston.gov
coronavirus,
we're
going
to
be
bringing
testing
wherever
it's
needed,
and
I
encourage
everyone
to
get
tested
regularly.
B
Each
of
us
has
a
role
to
play
as
we
continue
to
move
forward.
We
need
to
stay
focused
and
vigilant
on
the
battle
of
covet
19.,
every
resident
business
and
college
student.
We're
asking
people
to
stay
informed
and
follow
the
guidelines
that
have
been
laid
out
continue,
washing
your
hands
with
soap
and
warm
water,
avoid
large
gatherings,
keep
at
least
six
feet
from
other
people
when
you're
walking
down
the
street
or
if
you're,
jogging
or,
if
you're
running
or,
if
you're
hanging
on
the
beach
we're
asking
people
to
wear
masks,
keep
your
masks
on.
B
If
it's
just
like,
when
you're
going
to
a
restaurant,
you
get
your
mask
on
until
you
sit
at
a
table
if
you're
walking
down
the
street-
and
you
want
to
have
your
mask
in
your
hand
or
pull
it
down
while
you're
walking.
If
you
see
other
people
asking
you
to
pull
it
back
up
face
covering
is
hard
for
some
to
get
used
to,
but
I
want
people
to
think
of
it.
It's
like
putting
a
seat
belt
on
years
ago,
when
there
was
a
big
push
for
seat
belts.
B
No
one
wanted
to
put
on
people
said
it
felt
restrictive.
Now
it's
the
norm.
No
one
even
thinks
about
wearing
a
seatbelt
anymore.
It
automatically
goes
on
no
one
expects
to
be
in
an
accident,
but
you
don't
feel
safe
until
you
buckle
up
and
that's
common
sense,
where
I
see
the
same
thing
with
masks
when
you
have
a
mask
on
you're,
safe
you're,
protecting
yourself
and
you're,
protecting
others
from
coronavirus.
B
Boston
has
done
well
over
the
last,
quite
honestly,
almost
three
months,
because
our
residents
are
resilient
and
responsible,
and
I
want
to
thank
you
for
that.
We
understand
the
power
of
making
simple
sacrifices
for
our
families
and
our
communities,
and
we
also
have
looked
out
and
taking
care
of
each
other
and
that's
what
we
have
to
keep
on
doing
working
together
to
keep
these
numbers
down
is
how
we
support
a
safe,
equitable
recovery
of
our
businesses,
of
our
schools
of
our
own
families,
quite
honestly,
boston,
public
schools.
B
B
But
I
want
to
be
clear:
every
family
has
the
choice
to
begin
the
year
remotely,
even
if
we
have
a
hybrid
model
on
the
table.
Our
priorities
are
safety,
quality
and
equity
safety.
We
will
be
guided
by
the
science
and
the
data,
just
like
we've
been
throughout
the
pandemic.
Some
people
have
said
what
does
that
mean?
That
means
that
we're
looking
at
the
the
daily
positives
in
boston
and
we're
looking
at
the
weekly
positive
test
results.
B
So
two
weeks
ago
we
had
a
2.8
percent
positive
rate
for
people
taking
tests
of
covert
19..
Last
week
we
had
2.6
percent.
We
saw
a
dip
in
the
last.
If
you
look
at
the
last
10
week
period
with
average,
I
believe
2.2
percent,
roughly
of
positive
cases,
the
highest
being,
I
think,
2.9
and
the
lowest
being
1.9,
so
we're
working
to
make
sure
that
our
testing
stays
in
that
area.
B
B
We've
inspected
twenty
seven
thousand
five
hundred
windows
in
our
school
and
we're
repairing
right.
Now.
Seventy
three
hundred
windows
we're
going
to
have
making
sure
that
there's
window
a
window
in
every
classroom
that
don't
open
that
doesn't
open
that
they'll
be
able
to
open
but
we're
replacing
or
rebuilding
7
300
windows
throughout
the
district,
we've
inspected,
35
hvac
systems
and
we
purchased
three
thousand
fans.
B
B
Students
experiencing
poverty,
hunger
and
homelessness,
students,
learning
english
students
with
disabilities,
suiting
students
suffering
from
the
impact
of
systemic
racism,
which
leads
to
significant
opportunity
and
achievement
gaps
that
we've
witnessed
in
our
district
for
decades,
quality
the
superintendent
school
leaders
and
teachers
have
been
working
hard
and
working
together
to
make
all
the
learning
options.
High
quality
community
input
has
shaped
every
step
of
the
planning
that
we're
doing.
B
B
They
are
working
together
on
key
issues
connecting
with
families
using
home
visits
and
technology,
making
up
for
lost
time
in
school.
Addressing
social
and
emotional
struggles,
making
sure
the
school
day
is
age
appropriate
for
all
students,
they're
gonna
can
we're
gonna
continue
to
work
together.
We're
gonna
continue
to
coordinate
with
child
care
and
after
school
programs.
B
The
registration
deadline
for
the
primary
is
august
22nd,
which
is
the
saturday.
So
if
you
want
to
vote
in
the
september
first
election,
you
need
to
register
to
vote
by
august
22nd.
You
can
learn
about
your
voting
status.
If
you
go
to
boston.gov
elections
this
year,
we're
certainly
facing
challenges
to
the
election
process
like
we've.
Never
ever
seen
before
a
pandemic
and
also
attacks
from
the
white
house,
we
are
committing
to
making
sure
bostonians
can
vote
safely.
B
We
have
in-person
voting
for
all
elections
with
safety
protocol
and
within
ppe
we've
moved
some
polling
locations
out
of
our
senior
buildings
for
resident
safety.
So
I
think
we've
moved
over
20
locations
around
the
city.
You
will
have
received
a
letter
in
the
mail
if
your
polling
location
has
been
changed.
If
you
didn't
receive
a
letter,
your
opponent
location
has
not
been
changed.
B
We're
notifying
registered
voters
if
they've
been
impacted
by
these
polling
location
changes
and
we'll
also
have
done
the
best.
We
can
to
make
sure
that
those
location
changes
are
very
close
to
your
current
location,
polling
location,
we're
holding
early
voting
again
this
year,
and
it
begins
this
coming
weekend
for
primary
early
voting
is
august
22nd
to
august
28th
at
a
total
of
18
locations
across
the
city,
including
right
here
at
city
hall.
B
The
general
election
early
vote
will
begin
on
october
17th
and
go
through
october
30th.
So
for
right
now
it's
this
saturday
august
22nd
to
the
28th.
If
you'd
like
to
early
vote
for
any
information-
or
you
want
to
find
out
about
voting,
including
early
vote
locations,
we're
asking
you
to
visit
boston.gov
elections
or
you
can
call
three
one
one
and
we'll
connect
you
to
the
election
department.
B
B
We've
sent
out
over
60
000
of
those
ballots
to
register
voters
to
people
who
requested
it,
and
we
continue
to
process
those
requests.
I
urge
everyone
who
wants
one
and
has
not
done
so
yet
to
send
your
application
in
right
away
for
the
primary
for
mail-in
ballots
that
must
be
received
by
wednesday
august
26.
If
you
want
to
get
your
your
ballot
mailed
to
you,
we
will
process
every
request
received
by
that
day.
B
Trackmyballotmass.Comtrackmyballotma.Com,
that's
trackmyballotma.com!
You
can
literally
track
your
ballot
to
see
where
it
is.
Today.
I'm
also
going
to
announce
another
voting
access
point.
We
have
placed
a
ballot
box
in
the
lobby
of
city
hall
right
behind
me.
I
actually
can't
see
it,
but
I
think
it's
it's
covered
up
there,
but
right
inside
city
hall,
it's
available
monday
through
friday,
9
a.m
to
5
p.m.
B
No
appointment
is
needed.
However,
you
will
be
screened
for
covert
symptoms
upon
entering
the
building
and
that's
folks
that
have
an
absentee
ballot
or
a
million
ballot
that
you
don't
want
to
put
in
the
mail.
You
want
to
drop
it
off
here.
You
can
drop
it
off
right
here
at
city
hall.
You
can
drop
it
off.
Also
by
august
26th,
you
can
drop
off
your
applications
for
asking
for
a
mail-in
ballot,
so
you
can
drop
them
all
off
here
at
city
hall
as
well.
B
We
request
that
you
turn
your
completed
ballot
in
as
soon
as
possible,
and
I
just
want
to
remind
everyone
when
you
do
the
absentee
ballot
and
you
get
the
vote
and
you're
voting
on
the
outside
of
the
envelope.
There's
a
place.
You
have
to
sign
your
name,
you'll
see
it
make
sure
you
sign
your
name,
so
the
the
ballot
is
validated.
B
We
also
have
another
concern
that
we're
dealing
with
this
election
season.
The
president
has
threatened
to
undermine
the
operations
of
the
u.s
postal
service
to
disrupt
mail.
In
voting,
we
need
a
strong
postal
service.
We
have
a
strong
postal
service,
the
men
and
women
who
deliver
our
mail
every
single
day
are
out
there
regardless
the
conditions,
many
of
our
seniors
and
others
receive
their
medications
by
mail,
along
with
their
checks
and
other
essential
items
to
threaten
this.
B
On
the
eve
of
the
election
during
a
pandemic
is
a
dangerous
attack
on
the
fundamental
institution
and
values
we've
been
in
contact
with
the
secretary
of
state's
office.
I
spoke
personally
to
the
attorney
general
this
morning
and
other
members
of
congress
about
this
congressman.
Lynch
and
congresswoman
presley
are
on
the
oversight
and
reform
committee.
They
acted
quickly
to
launch
hearings.
I
want
to
thank
our
congressional
delegation
for
a
swift
response.
B
We
call
on
the
federal
government
to
protect
and
support
the
postal
service
at
this
critical
time.
Postal
workers,
as
I
mentioned,
have
been
the
lifeline
to
many
residents
in
this
crisis
and
now
they're
helping
us
to
protect
our
democracy.
I
want
to
thank
all
of
the
postal
workers
who
are
working
for
us
and
also
elections
are
the
cornerstone
of
our
democracy
and
access
to
voting
is
a
fundamental
right.
Today
marks
the
100th
anniversary
of
the
ratification
of
the
19th
amendment
to
the
united
states
constitution.
B
B
B
Yeah
the
question
the
question
on
the
from
sean
carter
from
boston,
harold
is
the
city
council
has
in
front
of
them
tomorrow,
three
or
four
names
of
recommendations
for
the
zoning
board
of
appeal
that
this
threat,
that's
going
to
be
it's
they're
not
going
to
be
voted
on.
First
and
foremost,
they
need
to
be
voted
on.
B
B
These
these
actions
or
inaction
by
a
couple
of
counselors
is
caught
will
cause
a
lot
of
harm
in
our
city.
We
have
hundreds
and
hundreds
of
applications
in
front
of
the
zona
board
of
appeal
people's
homes,
people's
livelihood,
their
investments
that
we
need
to
move
forward.
If
we
don't
get
these
voted
on
and
these
commissioners
vote
on,
we
won't
have
the
ability
to
have
a
quorum
and
literally
could
stop
con
stop
development
in
the
city
and
its
tracks.
B
B
Have
been
vetted
through
a
community
process,
these
are
diverse
candidates
and
it's
something
that
that
is
important.
That
we've
never
had
this
issue
before
in
my
seven
years
as
mayor,
where,
where
we've
helped
the
council's
held
up
any
appointments
by
the
mayor's
office,
also
in
good
faith,
I
work
with
the
city
council
to
work
on
changing
definitions
of
zoning
members
moving
forward.
B
We
need
a
legislative
change
to
make
sure
that
this
happens
and
I
work
with
them
in
good
faith,
and
then
I
signed
their
ordinance
into
law,
not
until
law.
By
signing
their
owns,
we
we've
sent
it
up
to
the
state
house
and
we're
working
together
again.
This
is
another
issue
where
we
need
to
work
collectively
together
to
advance
the
city
moving
forward.
B
I
have
one
question
that
came
in
sorry:
I
didn't
read
it:
it
came
in
pre
conference
pre.
The
press
conferences
want
to
read
it.
New
bps
data
shows
that
nearly
30
bpd
excuse
me.
Data
shows
that
nearly
30
increase
in
shootings
over
2019.
B
B
I
want
our
residents
to
know
that
we're
focused
on
resources
the
most
in
the
most
highly
impacted
communities
in
the
city
of
boston.
This
pandemic
has
certainly
created
a
scenario
where
many
youth
and
young
adults
lack
opportunities
that
they
otherwise
would
depend
upon.
We
are
working
with
all
of
our
violence
prevention
partners
to
prevent
more
incidents
from
happening
before
they
happen,
we're
providing
one-on-one
case
management
to
those
most
susceptible
to
gang
activity
and
our
office
of
public
safety
in
partnership
with
soar,
boston
street
workers,
the
boston
police
department,
our
trauma
teams
and
boston.