Barnstable County Receives First Installment of State Aid From Department of Public Health

Patient being tested at the Cape Cod Healthcare drive-thru facility at Cape Cod Community College

HYANNIS – Barnstable County health officials have received the first installment of state aid from the Massachusetts Department of Public Health to help Cape Cod towns during the pandemic.

The money, which totals $100,000, is part of a larger $5 million fund that Governor Charlie Baker approved to aid municipalities across the state.

“We have received the first installment and it will be starting to work its way out to the towns probably a little later this week,” said Director of the Barnstable County Department of Health and Environment Sean O’Brien

“We do expect a second installment coming in, we have received a contract, we will get that contract squared away and we will then start working on getting that out to the communities as well.”   

County health officials will act as a fiduciary and the money will be distributed to the 15 towns on Cape Cod.     

This comes as testing continues to increase on Cape Cod.

Eighty cars went through the drive-thru testing facility on Wednesday at Cape Cod Community College.

The number of vehicles that come through the facility does not represent the exact number of patients who were tested.

The drive-thru testing facility has extended its hours to 8 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Primary care physicians are continuing to make sure that people fit the required criteria for testing as patients will not be tested at the facility without a doctor’s order.

Testing at the drive-thru facility is expected to continue to see a high number of patients moving forward.

Health officials continue to stress the importance of social distancing and are encouraging residents to stay home as much as possible.

O’Brien added that anyone who has been to or traveled through New York recently needs to observe a 14 day quarantine period to prevent the virus from spreading.

On Wednesday Governor Charlie Baker closed school through May 4^th.

When asked, O’Brien said he was unsure if the prolonged closure would extend to Massachusetts businesses.

It was also noted that only Governor Baker could make the decision to close the bridges.  

An area of concern throughout Barnstable County continues to be the limited number of personal protective equipment.

According to health officials, while there are delays in acquiring more PPE, there are orders coming in from the DPH and stockpiles throughout the state.

There are also possibilities of additional orders to be made.

The CDC has also released information for medical professionals on how to reuse masks.

According to the DPH, as of Thursday afternoon, over 23,500 people have been tested in Massachusetts with 2,417 positive results and 25 fatalities.  

A total 67 positive cases have been identified in Barnstable County and three in Dukes and Nantucket Counties, according to Thursday’s update from the state.