New COVID-19 Restrictions Begin in Massachusetts

NEW BEDFORD, MA (AP & WLNE) – A series of new measures meant to curb the spread of COVID-19 took effect in Massachusetts on Friday.  The restrictions, ordered by Republican Gov. Charlie Baker and unveiled earlier this week, took hold at 12:01 a.m.

Baker’s executive order requires anyone above the age of 5 to wear a mask in public. It expands on a previous order that urged people to wear a mask in public if they couldn’t socially distance.

The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority said Friday it will enforce the order across the transportation system and that Transit Police have been authorized to fine violators up to $300.

Baker’s order also instructs residents to stay home between 10 p.m. and 5 a.m., with exceptions for certain activities.

The number of COVID-19 cases continues to climb at a worrisome pace in Massachusetts as the state wrestles with this new coronavirus spike.

On Thursday, Massachusetts reported 23 newly confirmed coronavirus deaths and more than 1,760 newly confirmed cases of COVID-19, the highest since the spring when the state was struggling to emerge from the grips of the first wave of the disease.

The new report pushed the state’s confirmed COVID-19 death toll to 9,859 and its confirmed caseload to nearly 160,700.