POLITICO Massachusetts Playbook: WALSH: SHUT DOWN would be ‘LAST RESORT’ — RESTAURANTS face TOUGH WINTER — LOWELL to open FIELD HOSPITAL

 

BY STEPHANIE MURRAY Presented by the American Heart Association GOOD MORNING, MASSACHUSETTS. TGIF! 'THE NEXT STEP IS SHUTTING EVERYTHING DOWN' — The picture in Massachusetts is looking pretty bleak. The state blew past its record for coronavirus cases yesterday, reporting 6,477 new cases. That number includes a backlog of 680 cases, but it's still higher than previous figures. And the number of cities considered "high risk" for Covid-19 spread also ticked upward. The state is looking for medical personnel to staff two new field hospitals in Worcester and Lowell. And a field hospital to handle an influx in Covid-19 patients could be coming to Boston soon, Mayor Marty Walsh said during a press briefing on Thursday. "We're right behind," Walsh said, in reference to the city's rising numbers. "By Tuesday we could be building a field hospital." The big question is still whether the state will roll back any reopening measures in the coming weeks. The White House has suggested Massachusetts consider scaling back what's open statewide, rather than on the community-by-community basis the state does now. For now, the answer is no. Gov. Charlie Baker said the nature of the surge in cases this fall differs from what happened in the spring, and that mechanisms his administration put in place in November have slowed the spread. The governor called the situation "a constant balancing act." "We're going to continue to pay attention to the data that's released every day, but the one thing I would say is one day does not make a trend," Baker said. "The implementation of the stay at home advisory back in the beginning of the beginning of November absolutely appeared to have an impact on our case growth two weeks later, which is what you would have expected to see, as well as the limit on private gatherings. Many communities are no longer in step two of phase three, they're in step one, because they don't meet the qualifications and the criteria to be in step two." In Boston, Walsh said changes could be on the way if cases continue to rise at the current rate, and pleaded with residents to stop hosting parties. The mayor pointed to Boston's existing restrictions, including a curfew, a mask order and school closures. "The next step is shutting everything down, that's the next step. And we've done that before," Walsh said. "That's the last resort, is wanting to shut things down. But if these numbers continue to go up and we see, you know — maybe Tuesday, I'm standing here, I could be talking about putting plans, I'm shutting things down. Hopefully Tuesday I'm talking about, we're seeing the number go the other way again." FIRST IN PLAYBOOK: WALSH CALLS FOR DELAY TO MBTA CUTS — Boston Mayor Marty Walsh is calling on the MBTA's Fiscal Management Control Board to delay its vote on proposed service cuts, which is planned for Dec. 7. The agency has laid out a plan to cut some bus, subway, commuter rail and ferry service to bridge a budget gap. Walsh will hold a press conference at City Hall Plaza at 9:30 a.m. He'll be joined by Mike Vartabedian, of the Machinists Union District 15, Lee Matsueda from Community Labor United and Rick Dimino, president and CEO of A Better City. "These proposed cuts are a threat to our economy, our regional climate and housing goals, our collective health, and our work to close inequities across all facets of city life," Walsh said in a statement. "I offer my assistance in working with state legislators as well as the incoming Biden-Harris administration to find solutions that do not involve inequitable service cuts." Have a tip, story, suggestion, birthday, anniversary, new job, or any other nugget for the Playbook? Get in touch: smurray@politico.com. TODAY — Sen. Ed Markey and Connecticut Sen. Richard Blumenthal hold a virtual press conference with Association of Flight Attendants-CWA President Sara Nelson on legislation to require states to implement mask mandates. Boston Mayor Marty Walsh is a guest on GBH’s “Boston Public Radio.” A message from the American Heart Association: The facts on sugary drinks are simple. They pose a real health risk. Kids especially are drinking too many of them. All those sweet drinks contribute to major health problems, like diabetes and heart disease. And with Massachusetts already spending nearly $2 billion per year treating obesity-related diseases, we need to address the problem. Massachusetts should take a page from a growing number of places across the country and adopt a tax on sugary drinks. Learn more here.     TRACK THE TRANSITION: President-elect Biden has started to form a Cabinet and announce his senior White House staff. The appointments and staffing decisions made in the coming days send clear-cut signals about Biden's priorities. Transition Playbook is the definitive guide to one of the most consequential transfers of power in American history. Written for political insiders, it tracks the appointments, people, and the emerging power centers of the new administration. Track the transition and the first 100 days of the incoming Biden administration. Subscribe today.     THE LATEST NUMBERS – “Massachusetts reports 6,477 new COVID cases after reporting backlog, 49 deaths on Thursday,” by Tanner Stening, MassLive.com: “State health officials reported 6,477 new coronavirus cases on Thursday, which includes a backlog of 680 cases.” – “Mass. reports 276 new coronavirus cases among public school students, 251 among school staff members,” by Felicia Gans, Boston Globe. Link. – “97 Massachusetts cities and towns are now at high risk for coronavirus,” by Lisa Kashinsky, Boston Herald. Link. DATELINE BEACON HILL – “Consensus budget ups spending by 6.5%,” by Shira Schoenberg, CommonWealth Magazine: “Negotiators from the House and Senate reached an agreement Thursday evening on a $46.2 billion final budget for fiscal 2021. Both the House and Senate are planning Friday afternoon votes.Senate President Karen Spilka said the budget ‘makes important investments in key areas to steady the Commonwealth and assist our most vulnerable residents as we continue to deal with the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.’” – “Massachusetts State House rooms to undergo deep cleaning after person tests positive for COVID, Senate says,” by Steph Solis, MassLive.com: “Some rooms in the Massachusetts State House will undergo an environmental cleaning after a person affiliated with the Senate tested positive for COVID-19, according to an email sent to lawmakers and staff. The person, whose title was not given, was in the building on Wednesday.” – “Lowell field hospital for COVID-19 patients being set up amid second surge, state officials say,” by Steph Solis, MassLive.com: “Lowell General Hospital is setting up a field hospital to handle COVID-19 patients as Massachusetts faces a second surge of cases, state officials said Thursday. Speaking from the field hospital at Worcester’s DCU Center, Gov. Charlie Baker said a second field hospital will be operational in the coming weeks in the northeastern part of the state.” – “The state’s highest-paid quasipublic official is on track to earn $790,000 in 2020. It amounts to a pay cut,” by Matt Stout, Boston Globe: “The director of the state’s $80 billion pension fund will earn a $269,000 bonus this year, pushing his total compensation to nearly $790,000 and likely keeping him as the state’s highest-paid quasipublic official. The Pension Reserves Investment Management board voted Tuesday to give Michael G. Trotsky his full bonus, a yearly incentive that’s tied to the fund’s return over the course of three years.” – “Galvin calls for coronavirus ‘national vaccination day,’” by Lisa Kashinsky, Boston Herald: “Secretary of State William Galvin is calling for a ‘national vaccination day’ once coronavirus vaccines on the cusp of approval in the United States become widely available to the public. Galvin proposed selecting a date by which the general public would get the first dose of a vaccine.” – “Baker’s starter house effort a bust,” by Scott Van Voorhis, CommonWealth Magazine: “With the cost of buying a home in Eastern Massachusetts continuing to soar further out of reach for many families, a Baker administration plan designed to spur construction of affordably priced ‘starter homes’ seemed just the thing to provide hope for would-be homeowners.” – “Mass. Civil Service Commission launches probe of hiring and promotions in the Methuen Police Department,” by Andrea Estes, Boston Globe: “The state Civil Service Commission has launched an investigation into hiring and promotions at the Methuen Police Department under its embattled chief, Joseph Solomon, one of the highest paid law enforcement officials in the country.” – “Lawmaker wants test devices for first-time DUI offenders,” by Christian M. Wade, Eagle-Tribune: “First-time drunk driving offenders would be required to get an ignition interlock device installed in their cars under a provision tucked into the state budget. Sen. Bruce Tarr's proposal is hooked onto the $46 billion spending package being hammered out by House and Senate negotiators.” FROM THE HUB – “Sharp increase in Mass. COVID-19 cases likely does not include expected Thanksgiving surge,” by Dasia Moore, Boston Globe: “Massachusetts on Wednesday reported a record number of new COVID-19 cases, but experts warn that the worst is yet to come. Of the 4,613 cases reported, many are likely unrelated to Thanksgiving travel and gatherings, epidemiologists said .” – “Mass. Adding 1,300 Emergency Homeless Shelter Beds For Winter,” by Lynn Jolicoeur, WBUR: “The state is adding more than 1,300 temporary shelter beds to help individuals experiencing homelessness stay warm and distanced this winter. According to the Executive Office of Health and Human Services (EOHHS), the Department of Housing and Community Development will provide $37 million in additional funding to help homeless service agencies create the shelter spaces or lease rooms in hotels and motels.” – "What we know about COVID-19 vaccines in Mass. — and what we don’t,” by Deanna Pan and Robert Weisman, Boston Globe: “Sometime this month, the first Massachusetts residents could begin to get vaccinated against COVID-19, hopefully signaling the beginning of the end of the grueling pandemic. But the record-time arrival of these vaccines raises a host of questions from a wary and beleaguered public.” – “The Pfizer COVID vaccine is coming, but some Massachusetts hospitals don’t have the freezers needed to store them at minus 112 degrees,” by Tanner Stening, MassLive.com: “Hospitals across Massachusetts are preparing for the possibility of a coronavirus vaccine coming in the middle of December. But the rollout of Pfizer’s prototype vaccine, assuming it receives emergency use authorization from the Food and Drug Administration, will require freezers to store the shots at temperatures of minus 80 degrees Celsius (minus 112 Fahrenheit) — equipment that many of the state’s smaller hospitals don’t yet have.” – “Without Aid, an “Extinction” Level Event Is Coming for Boston Restaurants This Winter,” by Scott Kearnan, Boston Magazine: “The temperature reached 63-degrees in Boston on Dec. 1—unseasonably balmy. And yet, all over the city, restaurants making use of public patios were required to roll up their patios. Why? Ken Oringer isn’t sure. The James Beard award-winning chef, one of Boston’s biggest dining-world names, says he has never received a clear answer as to why the city didn’t extend the end-date for pandemic-era allowances .” – “What it feels like to get Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine,” by Dialynn Dwyer, Boston.com: “A 24-year-old Boston area resident is sharing his experience with participating in the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine trial, describing what it felt like after getting the injections. Moderna has applied for emergency FDA approval for its vaccine, which the company announced was shown to be about 94.1 percent effective during the trials.” – “Massachusetts Scales Up Contact Tracing, But Some Experts Question Its Value,” by Gabrielle Emanuel, GBH News: “The state is also increasing its contact tracing capacity to back up local boards of health. The team is 1,300 strong right now, and the Contact Tracing Collaborative (CTC) said it’s actively recruiting another 800 people. But as efforts across the state ramp up, there are skeptics. In fact, some experts say this multi-million dollar initiative isn’t helping — and it might actually be hurting the state.” – “Despite development slowdown, the state’s life science industry keeps on building,” by Tim Logan, Boston Globe: “The years-long building boom that has reshaped much of Greater Boston has taken a bit of a pause during the pandemic, except for one sector: life sciences. The business of financing, building, and filling lab space, drug manufacturing facilities ― and even apartment buildings to house people who work in the industry ― has barely skipped a beat in recent months.”       THE RACE FOR CITY HALL – “Marty Walsh’s campaign spent $40K on polling last month,” by Sean Philip Cotter, Boston Herald: “Mayor Martin Walsh shelled out $40,000 for polling last month as hizzoner’s campaign brought in and paid out six-figure totals — even though he still hasn’t officially said he’s running again. The November campaign-finance numbers for Walsh and the two city councilors — Andrea Campbell and Michelle Wu who are gunning for the big office on the fifth floor of City Hall next year — all became available on Thursday.” PLANES, TRAINS AND AUTOMOBILES – “MBTA is overstating budget problems ahead of service cuts, report says,” by Adam Vaccaro, Boston Globe: “The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority is overstating its coronavirus budget problems and may not have to impose major reductions in service planned for next spring and summer, an independent transit panel reported. The MBTA Advisory Board, which represents the cities and towns served by the T, said Thursday that there was ‘no budgetary justification’ for a host of proposed changes.” – “MBTA General Manager Steve Poftak Responds To Pushback On Service Cuts,” by Paris Alston and Tiziana Dearing, WBUR. Link. – “MassPike exit renumbering begins; new numbers to bring highway up to federal standards,” by Jim Kinney, Springfield Republican: “The renumbering of exits on the Massachusetts Turnpike, Interstate 90, will get underway on Sunday Dec. 13. The state Department of Transportation informed EZPass toll customers of the expected commencement in an email this week.” DAY IN COURT – “Florida Masseuse Ordered to Pay $31,573 After 'Soliciting' Robert Kraft To 'Commit Prostitution,'” by Elizabeth Nolan Brown, Reason: “Three women arrested last year as part of a high-profile ‘human trafficking’ sting in Florida were sentenced recently as part of plea agreements with Palm Beach County prosecutors. While avoiding further jail time, the women must still pay the state some hefty fees for allegedly facilitating the sexual gratification of massage customers, including New England Patriots' owner Robert Kraft.” MEANWHILE IN RHODE ISLAND – “Raimondo says she won't be HHS secretary,” By Adam Cancryn, POLITICO: “Rhode Island Gov. Gina Raimondo announced Thursday that she has taken herself out of contention to be President-elect Joe Biden’s health secretary. ‘I am not going to be president-elect Biden’s nominee for HHS secretary,’ she said during a press conference on Thursday.” TRUMPACHUSETTS – “Even in Mass., 1 in 4 think election not fair,” by Richard Parr, CommonWealth Magazine: “Even in deep blue Massachusetts, where twice as many voters voted for Joe Biden as Donald Trump, 1 out of every 4 residents thinks the election was not free and fair. As one might expect, there’s a pretty stark divide by presidential vote on these questions. Fully 99 percent of Biden voters think Joe Biden won the presidential election.” MEANWHILE IN MAINE – “Barney Frank and husband sue Mass. contractor over work at $350,000 beach house in Wells,” by Judy Harrison, Bangor Daily News: “Former U.S. Rep. Barney Frank and his husband James Ready have sued a Massachusetts contractor over the construction of their $350,000 beach house in Wells. The couple claims in the lawsuit filed Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Portland that Shaun Madden Contracting of Burlington walked off the job in May after completing a little over $208,000 worth of the work.” ABOVE THE FOLD — Herald: “OUT OF THE BOX,” — Globe: “Records fall, and virus rages on.” FROM THE 413 – “Staff doubles at Holyoke COVID-19 testing sites; City Council vents frustration on lack of locations,” by Dennis Hohenberger, MassLive.com: “Staffing has increased at two COVID-19 testing sites in Holyoke after the City Council sent a strongly worded letter to the state Department of Public Health. The council expressed frustration with the lack of drive-thru testing venues in Western Massachusetts. Holyoke’s two testing sites operate under the state’s Stop the Spread campaign.” – “Amid Historic State COVID Spike, Pittsfield Rescinds Ban Indoor Dining At Restaurants,” by Josh Landes, WAMC: “The city of Pittsfield, Massachusetts has rescinded a ban on indoor dining. The November 12th order to halt table service in Pittsfield’s restaurants following an explosion of COVID-19 cases from October gatherings prompted outcry from business owners.” – “What a difference a year makes: MGM Springfield quarterly report shows damage done by coronavirus pandemic,” by Peter Goonan, Springfield Republican: “What a difference a year makes — and a pandemic. MGM Springfield shared its third-quarter report with the Massachusetts Gaming Commission on Thursday, showing dramatic changes in revenues, employment and other markers resulting from the coronavirus pandemic.” THE LOCAL ANGLE – “Cape remains 'testing desert' for COVID-19; more sites planned,” by Cynthia McCormick, Cape Cod Times: “Members of the Cape’s legislative delegation wrote to Baker on Nov. 23 to ask for at least one state-sponsored, no-cost Stop the Spread testing site for asymptomatic people to be established on the Cape. The administration has not given a definitive answer about whether a Stop the Spread test site will be located in Barnstable County, Cyr said Thursday morning during a press briefing of the Cape Cod Reopening Task Force.” – “Framingham superintendent says there is evidence of in-school COVID-19 spread,” by Zane Razzaq, MetroWest Daily News: “Superintendent of Schools Robert Tremblay said the district has evidence of COVID-19 spreading within city schools. ‘What is different from a week ago is we're starting to see in-school transmission,’ he said Wednesday during a School Committee meeting.” – “Worcester officials advise residents to avoid in-person shopping, dining as new COVID cases surge to new highs,” by Michael Bonner, MassLive.com: “With numbers rising to new highs, Augustus still declined to implement stricter guidelines for restaurants and retail. While a mandate wasn’t implemented, Hirsh and Augustus advised residents to avoid indoor dining and work from home when possible.” – “Testing site big draw in Beverly,” by Paul Leighton, The Salem News: “If there were any doubts about the demand for COVID-19 testing, they were erased at 6:45 a.m. on Wednesday when the first cars began showing up at Lynch Park. That was more than an hour before the start of the first day of free testing for Beverly residents offered by the city.” MEDIA MATTERS – “Boston Globe names top journalists to be new Spotlight Fellows,” Boston Globe. Link. – “Yes, Dorchester’s John King is Ireland’s newest household name,” by Larry Donnelly, Dorchester Reporter: “One of the things that American visitors to Ireland are commonly confounded by is the extent to which people here are steeped in and informed about politics 3,000 miles away. The transatlantic ties sewn by emigration, family and, increasingly, business are largely responsible.” HAPPY BIRTHDAY – to Springfield state Rep. Angelo Puppolo, Marina McCarthy, Sarah Baron, Jennifer Taub, Maureen Forry-Sorrell of Dotnews and BostonIrish.com; and Kevin Towle HAPPY BIRTHWEEKEND – to Ellen Parker, Simon Jerome and Greg Timilty of BlueFin Research Partners, who all celebrate Saturday. And to state Rep. Peter Durant, Rep. Seth Moulton’s communications director Tim Biba, Adam Hogue and Hanna Switlekowski, who all celebrate Sunday. Want to make an impact? POLITICO Massachusetts has a variety of solutions available for partners looking to reach and activate the most influential people in the Bay State. Have a petition you want signed? A cause you’re promoting? Seeking to increase brand awareness among this key audience? Share your message with our influential readers to foster engagement and drive action. Contact Jesse Shapiro to find out how: jshapiro@politico.com. A message from the American Heart Association: The facts on sugary drinks are simple. They pose a real health risk. Kids especially are drinking too many of them. All those sweet drinks contribute to major health problems, like diabetes and heart disease. And with Massachusetts already spending nearly $2 billion per year treating obesity-related diseases, we need to address the problem. Massachusetts should take a page from a growing number of places across the country and adopt a tax on sugary drinks. Learn more here.     NEXT WEEK - DON'T MISS THE MILKEN INSTITUTE FUTURE OF HEALTH SUMMIT 2020: POLITICO will feature a special edition Future Pulse newsletter at the Milken Institute Future of Health Summit. The newsletter takes readers inside one of the most influential gatherings of global health industry leaders and innovators determined to confront and conquer the most significant health challenges. Covid-19 has exposed weaknesses across our health systems, particularly in the treatment of our most vulnerable communities, driving the focus of the 2020 conference on the converging crises of public health, economic insecurity, and social justice. Sign up today to receive exclusive coverage from December 7–9.       Follow us on Twitter Stephanie Murray @StephMurr_Jour   Subscribe to the POLITICO Playbook family Playbook  |  Playbook PM  |  California Playbook  |  Florida Playbook  |  Illinois Playbook  |  Massachusetts Playbook  |  New Jersey Playbook  |  New York Playbook  |  Brussels Playbook  |  London Playbook View all our politics and policy newsletters FOLLOW US

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