Worcester Business Journal

4 Worcester Business Journal | May 24, 2021 | wbjournal.com C E N T R A L M AS S I N B R I E F Mass. lifting all COVID-19 restrictions on May 29 V E R BAT I M Bad investment "The fact that there's so few alternatives available to some of these applicants means that they're probably more open to considering some of these terms than they would be if they had some other options." Steven Hoffman, chairman of the Massachusetts Cannabis Control Commission, who is concerned about the terms outside investors are getting minority cannabis business applicants to agree to while they wait for CCC approval to open CEO departure "The museum has emerged from the pandemic in a strong position, and the team has a solid plan in place to carefully bring all of our offerings and experiences back online in a financially sustainable fashion." Lucy Hall, CEO of the Worcester science museum EcoTarium, who is stepping down from her role on May 28 Another CEO departure "Twenty-five years ago, I began the journey of a lifetime. In those intervening years, we built Virtusa into a recognized market leader partnering with blue chip brands across the globe in the rapidly growing digital engineering services market." Kris Canekeratne, the founder of Southborough IT company Virtusa Corp., who is stepping down from his roles as CEO and chairman on June 30, following the acquisition of his company by Baring Private Equity Asia T he Gov. Charlie Baker Administration announced May 17 all of the state's remaining COVID-19 restrictions will be lied on May 29, including the face mask restriction, except in a few settings. Baker will end the now 15-month- long state of emergency on June 15. Effective May 29, all industries will be permitted to open with a capacity of 100%, the administration announced, and the state's gathering limit will be rescinded. All industries will be encouraged to follow U.S. Centers for Disease Control guidance for cleaning and hygiene protocols, according to the release. e decisions come with Massachusetts on track to meet the goal of vaccinating 4.1 million residents by the first week of June. New masks details When the mask order ends, Baker said the Massachusetts Department of Public Health will issue a new public health advisory urging unvaccinated individuals to continue to wear masks in most indoors settings. e enforcement mechanism, Baker said, will be personal responsibility. Masks will also continue to be mandated in nursing homes, healthcare settings like hospitals and physicians' offices, inside schools and day care centers, in prisons, jails, and homeless shelters, on public and private mass transit, and in transportation hubs, like commuter rail and bus stations. e continuation of the mask BY SAM BONACCI Special to the Worcester Business Journal mandate for public transportation is consistent with CDC recommendations on travel, and covers MBTA trains, subways and ferries, as well as private taxis, limos and Uber and Ly rides. Baker said he would continue to take his cues for masks on mass transit from federal health authorities. "If they change their guidance, we'll obviously make our own decision at that point, but I support the decision that the CDC made on transit," Baker said. e Centers for Disease Control set the stage for Massachusetts and other states that still had mask mandates in place let go of the requirements. e agency said May 13 it was safe for vaccinated Americans to be around other vaccinated and unvaccinated people, both indoors and outdoors, without social distancing. Some states, like Connecticut, Vermont and Rhode Island, acted almost immediately to adopt the CDC mask guidelines, while Baker, who was in Washington, D.C. at the time, took the weekend to consider the options. Massachusetts boasts one of the highest vaccination rates in the country, and it will be the last state in New England to li its mask mandate, also trailing its neighbor, New York. Dr. Carole Allen, president of the Massachusetts Medical Society, said the administration's updated mask policy was "consistent with the administration's thoughtful and data- guided approach to reopening, and the positive trend in key COVID-19 metrics which drove this action underscores the safety and efficacy of vaccines." PHOTO/WBJ FILE W Gov. Charlie Baker

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