Of all of Governor Charlie Baker’s decisions on the state’s phased reopening, one of the most difficult had to be his edict that overnight camps remain closed.
Camps were initially listed in Phase 3. Anticipating a July 6 opening, many operators invested in materials, staff, training and property, only to find out on July 2 that Baker had moved camps to Phase 4 - dooming them for the 2020 calendar year.
Normally transparent on such decisions, Baker gave no hint that plans to let overnight camps reopen in Phase 3 had changed. He did not mention it during his press conference prior to the Phase 3 reopening. Many operators found out only after noticing the state’s web site had changed.
Day camps reopened in June. Most overnight camps had already decided not to reopen, but those planning to welcome campers were stunned.
Children were no doubt heartbroken. The Baker Administration has said only that any reopening decisions are subject to the latest in health data, which can change.
Camp administrators say some facilities may never reopen. Operators can’t just produce an overnight camp overnight, and they deserved a much better, more direct heads-up than they received on whether a strategy change was being contemplated.
That said, keeping the camps closed is shaping up as the correct decision. Summer camps are a new hotspot for coronavirus cases.
An overnight camp in Missouri sent teenagers home after reporting 82 positive COVID-19 tests. A Florida camp shut down after a staff member tested positive. A day camp in Texas called it off after four people recorded positive tests.
Other camps closed down after early positive tests, but made plans to reopen later this summer. Most of these infected camps were opened with strict and serious safety precautions, but still couldn’t stop the virus from infiltrating their populations.
These early returns from other states may explain the Baker Administration’s change of heart on giving overnight camps the go-ahead in Massachusetts. The absence of warning to camp operators, and a peculiarly insensitive silence afterward, give camp administrators reason to feel sour.
All available evidence, though, points to the correctness of the decision itself. Overnight camps across America are reporting a rash of COVID-19 cases. That will not happen in Massachusetts, a state that continues to err on the side of caution, which is proving to be not an error at all.
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July 20, 2020 at 08:28PM
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Baker’s decision to keep overnight camps closed was mishandled but correct (Editorial) - masslive.com
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