LIST: Massachusetts communities not designated lower-risk

View the list of communities that are not designated as "lower-risk" communities, which will remain in Step 1 of Phase III of the Commonwealth's reopening plan.

Posted: Oct 5, 2020 / 02:00 PM EDT / Updated: Nov 23, 2020 / 09:34 AM EST

BOSTON (Mass.gov) – Effective Monday, October 5th, lower risk communities will be permitted to move into Step II of Phase III of the Commonwealth’s reopening plan. All other communities will remain in Phase III, Step I. Governor Baker also announced changes to limits on gathering sizes, which are dependent on whether a community is designated as a lower-risk community.

Lower risk communities are defined as cities and towns that have not been a designated in the “red” category in any of the last three weekly Department of Public Health weekly reports.

Based on the most recent Department of Public Health data, the below communities are not considered lower-risk and may not advance to Step 2 of Phase III. All other communities are designated lower-risk and may advance to Step 2 of Phase III.

Holyoke High-Risk

According to the City of Holyoke, as of November 22 Holyoke has a total of 1,865 confirmed cases and 304 cases in the last 14 days.

Springfield High-Risk

In just one month the state has raised Springfield from a “Green” COVID-19 community to “Red” after a spike of cases in the city. According to the the City of Springfield, as of November 18 Springfield has a total of 5,824 confirmed cases and 1,117 cases in the last 14 days of the issued report.