Nicest Guy In Worcester Asking: Please, Wear Your Mask

WORCESTER, MA — Possibly the nicest guy in Worcester — a UMass Memorial pediatrician, a person who loves baseball hats — is asking: please remember to wear your masks while you're out in stores, restaurants and other public places.

It's not just because Worcester has a mask mandate in place (it came back in September and hasn't been lifted), although that's important. It's because your decisions affect lots of other people, Medical Director Dr. Michael Hirsh says.

If you go out in Worcester right now — looking at you Stop & Shop at Lincoln Plaza and especially the Shaw's along Gold Star Boulevard — you'll notice plenty of people strolling through stores without masks. It would go a long way to just slip a mask on, Hirsh says, to protect other people — and to avoid weird, possibly volatile confrontations with employees and other shoppers.

"A lot of people aren't wearing those masks," Hirsh said in a public service announcement on Wednesday. "And people are afraid to say anything. And the retail folks don't want to alienate customers."

Massachusetts is one of the most vaccinated states in the U.S., yet that's not enough to curb coronavirus. The state posted a 5 percent positive test rate on Wednesday for THE FIRST TIME SINCE JANUARY. And that's not even a week after Thanksgiving, when many people gathered for the first time since 2019. Then there's the looming omicron variant, which officially made landfall in the U.S. this week. Omicron could be more contagious than delta, and it's unclear if our current slate of vaccines will be any match for it.

No one can force you to wear a mask or get a vaccine. But a really nice guy who just wants us to live through the pandemic is asking: please, slip on a mask if you're going out in public. If not for your own health, for the health of others.

"We really need you to help us," Hirsh said. "Your health decisions are not just for yourself, it's for your neighbors, for your family, for your friends."

Worcester's mask mandate applies to businesses, retail, restaurants, bars, clubs, places of assembly and fitness centers.

Need a COVID-19 vaccine in Worcester? There are at least 12 upcoming clinics at spots around the city from the Worcester Islamic Center to the Nativity School.

Need a vaccine delivered to you? Call the state's homebound vaccine program at 1-833-983-0485 Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Need a ride to a vaccine clinic? Call the Family Resource Center at (508) 796-1411.

Have questions about vaccines? Check out this website put together by the city and the Health Foundation of Central Massachusetts.