More than 100 new Covid cases in a day? Nope. But a good reminder of a change in PCR testing
Cambridge reported a startling 104 new cases of Covid on Wednesday, but it turns out that most of them were not new. Instead, health department staff performing a year-end “historical case review” discovered 80 older cases.
With illnesses spiking as the holidays approach, $75 debit cards make for good vaccine motivator
Offering a $75 debit card to people who get vaccinated against Covid turned out to be a great success, public health officials said, but rates of illness are rising.
Gift cards at a Dec. 15 clinic could be the answer for city’s ‘disturbingly low’ Covid booster rates
For the first time, the city will offer a financial incentive for getting a Covid-19 shot, a suggestion of city councillors who are concerned by stubbornly low booster rates.
A week of events in Cambridge and Somerville, from a pie-based fundraiser to open art studios
In a look ahead at a week of Cambridge and Somerville events, Petsi Pies founder Renee McLeod shares her secrets for a good cause, a Holiday Plant Enthusiast Market is coming, there are open studios by Brickbottom/Joy Street artists, Robert Pinsky reads, “Something Strange” returns and much more.
In a sign of worsening mental health challenges, teen ward will be strengthened against violence
A tangle of problems such as staff shortages, lack of beds and scarce services have left troubled patients with long delays or no treatment. Aggressive behavior is one result.
Covid case counts get murkier with less data; Masking policies become harder to pin down
Cambridge public health officials have stopped relying on Covid case counts to assess the strength of the pandemic here because those numbers are no longer reliable.
Debunking fake tales of hospital Covid ‘bribes’: Families have no say in setting a cause of death
A conspiracy theory that medical authorities are inflating the Covid-19 death toll has persisted since early in the pandemic. Cambridge isn’t immune to the misinformation.
School district eases measures of class air quality
After extensively upgrading school ventilation starting in 2020 to prevent Covid-19 transmission, Cambridge Public Schools have changed how it’s monitored.
Covid cases are ticking up in homes for elderly, where staff has until Dec. 1 to get fully boosted
The number of new Covid-19 infections continues to mount in some Cambridge nursing homes and assisted-living centers, where residents face high risk because of age and poor health. after months when there were few in long-term care facilities here.
Attend meetings on the ‘MassAve4’ bike lanes, Alewife, issues facing Black residents and more
Public meetings this week look at Strategic planning for Kendall Square, plans for the “MassAve4” stretches of bike lanes and the Lechmere Canal Park, school Covid protocol changes, Issues facing Black residents, amending the city charter and zoning for the Alewife area.
