News

COVID-19 Vigilance

This message is a joint effort between the Martha’s Vineyard Regional Emergency Management Public Information Office, Martha’s Vineyard Boards of Health (MVBOH), Martha’s Vineyard Hospital (MVH), local police, Island Health Care, the Community Ambassadors, and many others.

Many of the new COVID-19 outbreaks are happening in family homes and large group gatherings. We want to remind you that the Governor has ordered that anyone with symptoms of COVID-19, or someone who has been in contact with persons proven to have COVID-19, must stay at home and isolate away from others.

This means:

• Staying in a bedroom by yourself without any roommates, partners, or spouses and using a separate bathroom when possible for 14 days
• If you must share a bathroom it needs to be cleaned and disinfected with bleach frequently and after each use.
• Wear a mask and maintain at least a 6-foot distance from one another when it is necessary to be in shared spaces.
• People who are sick should eat or be fed in their room.
• Do not share dishes, drinking glasses, cups, or eating utensils.
• Your town health department can provide specific recommendations for any houses where this is a question.
• A sick person should not go to work, should not go shopping, and should not run errands.

Please stay home to protect your neighbors, coworkers, and family! Please help those who test positive by encouraging them to stay home and do their errands or go food shopping for them!

There are many people and organizations here to support you. There are volunteer groups, churches, and government agencies to help you through your period of quarantine. They can bring you food and medical help with visiting nurses if needed.

The number of cases is growing too fast. We must all take this pandemic seriously. We have not had to resort to enforcement but may have to if people don’t comply and the number of infections continues to rise. There are fines that can be levied for not wearing masks in public or exceeding the guidelines for public or private gatherings.

Please wear your mask everywhere. That means out in public or in cars or trucks when traveling with people outside your home.
Please wash your hands often and stay away from large gatherings, especially now. Please, help the community by staying home!

If you feel sick or symptomatic, please call your doctor or the MVH Call Center at 508-684-4500 from Monday to Friday 8:00 AM – 5:30 PM and Saturday 8:30 AM – 12:30 PM. The MVH Call Center is available to all members of the community, whether or not you are a patient of MVH Primary Care. If you have an emergency and require medical attention, call 911 or go to the MVH Emergency Room.

If you are asymptomatic but worry about exposure or you’ve been off-Island, TestMV is open for no-cost testing for everyone Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Go to ihimv.org to learn more. If you do test positive or have been listed as a positive individual’s close contact, you will be contacted by a contact tracer who will answer any questions and tell you how to keep you and your household safe. Please answer those calls, or if you monitor your incoming calls, please call back immediately. This is critical to stopping community spread.

Let’s work together so we can all stay healthy and support one another. By working together, we will get through this.

Stay Informed & Utilize Resources

• Massachusetts Department of Public Health
• Reopening Massachusetts Guidance
• Living in Shared Housing Guidelines
• Social Distancing Guidelines
• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
• 24/7 Public Health Hotline: 2-1-1
  • (It is free and interpreter services are available.)
• Community Support and Resources from Martha’s Vineyard Community Services
• Martha’s Vineyard Boards of Health
• Visiting Nurse Association of Cape Cod – Martha’s Vineyard
  • 1-800-631-3900
• Islanders Help Facebook Page