Gov. Charlie Baker said he’ll have more to say Monday about lifting the state’s stay-at-home advisory that has been in place since March 23.

The Republican also said Tuesday he would have more specific information about which businesses would be allowed to open when – and under what safety protocols.

The first businesses to open will be those with little face to face contact with customers, Baker said. All businesses will have to adhere to basic safety measures including the use of facial coverings, maintaining social distancing and providing hand sanitizing stations.

The administration will also release industry-specific safety measures.

“I get the fact that everyone would like everything to be open sooner,” Baker said. “The downside to that, and it’s an important downside, is you want to do this in a way where you can sustain the opening when you go forward.”

Baker also filed a $1 billion supplemental budget with lawmakers Tuesday to cover COVID-19-related expenses from the purchase of personal protective equipment to the costs of building field hospitals.

Those costs should be reimbursed by the federal government, Baker said.

Massachusetts reported the fewest new COVID-19-related deaths in more than a month Tuesday, a sign the state may meet a critical component of federal economic reopening guidelines by May 18.

There were 33 deaths, bringing to 5,141 the total number of deaths recorded since the pandemic’s start.

The total number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 topped 79,300 after Massachusetts reported an additional 870 individuals who tested positive for the disease caused by the coronavirus.

There were more than 800 COVID-19 patients in intensive care. About 3,100 people overall were currently hospitalized with the disease.

The number of deaths at long-term care facilities stands at 3,095 – or more than 60 percent of all COVID-19-related deaths.

Baker: More Details on Stay-at-Home Advisory Monday

by The Associated Press time to read: 1 min
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