The First Year With Coronavirus In Massachusetts: Patch PM

MASSACHUSETTS — It's Monday, Feb. 1. Here's what you should know this afternoon:

• It’s the been one year since health officials reported the first confirmed case of coronavirus in Massachusetts.
• The snow is here and, by the time it ends, it will have dumped 12 to 18 inches over most parts of Massachusetts. The weather is hampering the state’s coronavirus vaccination efforts, which entered the second phase Monday.
• Former Rep. Joe Kennedy joined CNN as a commentator and has started a nonprofit jumping in his life after elected politics.
• Dustin Pedroia, 37, retired Monday after 17 seasons and as one of the most decorated infielders in Red Sox history.

Scroll down for those and other stories Patch has been covering in Massachusetts today.

Wednesday's Top Story

It’s been exactly one year since state public health officials reported on the first confirmed case of the coronavirus in Massachusetts.

As of Sunday, 498,144 other Massachusetts residents have tested positive for COVID-19 and there have been 14,287 reported coronavirus deaths in the state. About one-in-five Massachusetts restaurants have closed permanently, and the state's unemployment rate has reached levels it hadn;t seen since the great recession in 2009.

Dave Copeland, Patch’s deputy editor for Massachusetts, Rhode Island and New Hampshire, reflects on the grim milestone and how it has changed language in a commentary.

“Words are the primary tools we use to cover the news, and after Feb. 1, 2020 we had to learn how to use dozens of new tools,” Copeland writes. “After the first reported COVID-19 death in Massachusetts on March 20, it wasn't long before we started writing about ‘excessive death rate.’ That was the difference between the number of people that had died in the state in 2020 when compared to earlier years. Other terrifying words and phrases creeped into our everyday reporting and writing: PPE shortage...positive test rate...ventilators...hospital surge capacity.

“And, being a particularly squeamish person, I cringe every time I type ‘nasal swab’."

Read the full story.

Today’s Other Top Stories In Massachusetts

One year with coronavirus in Massachusetts: “Words are the primary tools we use to cover the news, and after Feb. 1, 2020 we had to learn how to use dozens of new tools,” Patch regional editor Dave Copeland writes in a commentary. “While it would be another six weeks before Gov. Charlie Baker shut down the state with another new phrase - "stay-at-home order" - February 1 was the day an international news story became an intensely-local story.”

Say it isn’t snow: The snow is here and, by the time it ends, it will have dumped 12 to 18 inches over most parts of Massachusetts. The storm will be with us for 36 hours, with the heaviest snowfall coming on Monday afternoon and evening. The weather is hampering the state’s coronavirus vaccination efforts, which entered the second phase Monday.

Kennedy’s star turn on CNN: Former Rep. Joe Kennedy joined CNN as a commentator and has started a nonprofit jumping in his life after elected politics. Kennedy represented the 4th Congressional District for eight years before throwing his hat in the ring to challenge Ed Markey for his seat in the Senate. After he lost in November, Kennedy said he had no plans any time soon to run for office again.

They Said It

“Dustin is so much more than his American League Most Valuable Player award, his All-Star Game selections, and the Gold Gloves he amassed throughout his impressive 17-year career in our organization.”

— Red Sox principal owner John Henry on Dustin Pedroia, who announced his retirement at age 37 Monday after 17 seasons with the team.

In Case You Missed It

• MA Has Third Most Stringent Coronavirus Restrictions: Report
• White House Releases Weekly Virus Reports For Massachusetts
• 2020 Rent Prices In Boston Dropped Amid Pandemic