In order to minimize the spread of coronavirus and make sure our hospitals are not overwhelmed, we are calling on Governor Baker to #ShutdownMASS today. This includes restaurants, bars, and non-essential businesses - it is clear that optional, individualized social distancing is not working and the time to act is slipping away.

In the absence of clear Federal guidance, we need decisive leadership in Massachusetts. We recognize that there will be severe economic effects from a shutdown, and we will undoubtedly need Federal and State-level financial assistance. Yet the consequences of "business as usual" will be far worse.

This is not a drill. In the words of George Q. Daley, Dean of the Harvard Medical School: "The outbreak of COVID-19 is the single most threatening pandemic to arise in the last century, and has historians recalling the devastation of the influenza pandemic of 1918, which infected about a third of the world’s population, resulting in at least 50 million deaths. The world’s population today is almost four times larger, and our communities are correspondingly denser and more vulnerable. Reducing not only community density but containing the migration of those infected with the virus will be essential for dampening the impact of this pandemic."

We call on Governor Baker to shut down all non-essential businesses in Massachusetts, as quickly as possible. We also call on Governor Baker to provide direct aide to those affected by this critically important shutdown, including a moratorium on evictions and foreclosures, sufficient paid leave for all workers, immediate support for small businesses, and ensuring that COVID-19 medical testing and treatment is available at no charge to MA residents.