Worcester Business Journal

4 Worcester Business Journal | September 27, 2021 | wbjournal.com C E N T R A L M AS S I N B R I E F V E R BAT I M New CEO "I look forward to continuing my father's legacy … My vision is to continue adding value to our clients and their employees as their dedicated HR partner." Rachel Lopez, president and CEO of Fitchburg human resources outsourcing firm Resource Management, Inc., who took over the top leadership position from her father, Reinaldo Lopez, on Sept. 1 New president "It's especially important to me in my new role to continue our family-oriented company culture and the mantra I was raised around: Our employees come first, vendors come sec- ond, and clients come third." Caitlyn Correia, new president of Worcester trade show exhibit manufacturer BlueHive Group, who is succeeding her father Paul Hanlon, who is staying on as CEO New CEO "I am honored to help build this historic new venture that will give Medicare-eligible patients here in Worcester County a more person- centered and dignified healthcare experience." Mary Hsieh, who in September became the first CEO of MassAdvantage, the Medicare Advantage health insurance plan from Worcester healthcare provider UMass Memorial Health and its partners C iting a month-to-month coronavirus case count which tripled from June to July and again from July to August, the City of Worces- Worcester institutes mask mandate, UMass Memorial goes on elevated alert BY MONICA BENEVIDES AND KATHERINE HAMILTON Worcester Business Journal Staff Writers ter announced a revived mask mandate for all indoor private common spaces in workplaces and indoor private spaces open to the public. e mandate went into effect Monday, Sept. 20. e mandate applies to everyone ages five or older and to places like retail stores, restaurants, bars, performance venues, houses of worship, fitness estab- lishments, and event spaces. e mask mandate does not apply when a person is alone in a workspace or alone in a room at their workplace with a closed door, or socially distanced from other people, per the order. A person may be exempt from the mask mandate if wearing a mask creates a health risk or is unsafe, such as in the case of relying on supplemental oxygen, or if advised by a doctor. e order said local hospitals like Saint Vincent Hospital and UMass Me- morial Medical Center are at maximum capacity with no available regional medi- cal hospital beds. 54% COVID spike UMass Memorial Medical Center in Worcester has seen an increase in COVID-positive patients from 35 to 54 cases in less than one week, forcing the hospital to go on an elevated alert status, according to a press release on Sept. 14. In total as cases have been rising, there were more than 70 positive cases across the UMass Memorial Health system, which includes hospitals in Worcester, Marlborough, Leominster, Clinton, and Southbridge. e hospital is now under elevated alert status, as the influx of COVID-19 cases has resulted in longer than normal wait times in the emergency department, said the Worcester hospital. Compounded by the closure of 111 beds at Saint Vincent Hospital in Worcester and a national labor shortage of healthcare workers, UMass Memorial said it was extremely strained for re- sources. ere are more than 400 vacant positions at the Medical Center and 600 caregivers who are out of work on paid leave, per the release. e resurgence of cases is fueled by the Delta variant of the coronavirus and the number of unvaccinated individuals in the area, the hospital said. In the announcement, UMass reported it is seeing some hospitaliza- tion among those vaccinated against COVID-19, but infections among vacci- nated individuals are minor to moder- ate. e hospital urged eligible people to get the vaccine. W

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