The City of Revere is closely monitoring the COVID-19 outbreak in Massachusetts and taking proactive steps to support containment efforts and prepare for further spread of the disease. Regular updates will be shared here and via social media.
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Mayor Brian Arrigo and the Revere Board of Health have announced a free COVID-19 testing site will operate at Revere High School from July 27- March 30 as part of the Baker-Polito Administration Stop the Spread initiative. Drive-thru testing will be available Monday through Saturday in the Revere High School parking lot at no cost, with no insurance, no identification and no appointment required. Results will be communicated to the individual within 2-3 days. Walk-up is available from 4-8 for Revere residents only - proof of residency required.
Revere High School Testing Site
Monday, 4pm-8pm - THIS SITE WILL BE OPEN ON MONDAY, JANUARY 18TH (MLK DAY)
Tuesday, 4pm-8pm
Wednesday, 4pm-8pm
Thursday, 4pm-8pm
Friday, 4pm-8pm
Saturday, 7am-11am
Revere High School site is subject to long lines. You might be turned away prior to closing time if the testing site has reached maximum capacity. Hours are weather permitting.
Revere Resident Only Senior Center Testing
Location: Revere Senior Center, 25 Winthrop Ave Date: Fridays and Sundays through January Time: 8:30am to 1pm
Bring proof of residency, as staff will be verifying.
Revere resident only Walk-Up Mobile testing
The City of Revere is partnering with Mass General Brigham, Mass General Hospital and the Kraft Center for Community Health to provide mobile COVID testing.
Location: CENTRAL AVENUE MUNICIPAL PARKING LOT, Walk-Up Only Date: Wednesdays in January Time: 8:30am to 1pm This is an observed self-swab testing location. This is a PCR test.
Bring proof of residency, as staff will be verifying.
Asymptomatic individuals only will be tested at this location.
The mobile van will be at various locations around Revere at other dates and times. Details pending.
EXPRESS COVID-19 TESTING SITE AT SUFFOLK DOWNS
Express COVID-19 Testing Site at Suffolk Downs is now open. Pre-registration is required via www.beacontesting.com. This test is drive-thru only and a self-swab test.
Please note: Current testing appointments are being booked a few days out at this time. It is necessary to pre-register for a time to access this testing site.
The site is located across the street from the Shops @ Suffolk Downs on Tomasello Way at 31 Furlong Drive in Revere, MA. You can access the site from either Revere Beach Parkway or Route 1A (William McClellan Parkway). We recommend accessing it from Route 1A to drive directly into the queue.
Hours are weather permitting.
Additional Testing Options
These locations require No Insurance, No PCP, No Questions Asked.
East Boston Health Center. Call 617-569-5800 and follow prompts to register for testing. You must register. You don’t need to schedule an appointment time, just show up on the day you have scheduled. Confirm verbally on the phone that an order has been placed for your test. They text you a link to an app where you can view your results. The location is at 79 Paris Street Monday-Friday 8am-12pm, 1pm-5pm and Saturday from 10am-12 pm, 1 pm-3pm. They are closed on Sundays.
Beth Israel Deaconess at 1000 Broadway in Chelsea has both a walk-in tent and an appointment tent.
Weekly Food Pantry. The First Congregational Church's Food Pantry is currently being held at the League of Special Needs building, 196 Winthrop Ave. and is open every Wednesday night, 6:00-8:00 PM. This weekly food pantry is free and open to all Revere residents. Drive-ups encouraged but walk-ups welcomed. Residents will receive a bag of non-perishable food items to last their household 5-7 days. Please do not arrive early.
Free Student Lunches. Revere Public Schools is offering free meals to students of all ages on Tuesdays and Fridays at all elementary school locations. Click here for full details.
Food Delivery. The City of Revere delivers non-perishable food items to residents who have mobility issues or are under medical quarantines. Deliveries take place Monday-Friday and typically take 24 hours to process. To request a delivery, residents must call 3-1-1 or 781-286-8311.
Cambridge Health Alliance Mobile Market. The Cambridge Health Alliance hosts a once a month event that will take place on Saturday, January 9 and then every first Saturday of the month for the rest of 2021. Located at the Revere Care Center on 454 Broadway (back parking lot) and will take place 10:30 AM–11:30 AM each Saturday that it’s held. Open to all for free fresh fruits and vegetables. For more information, please email PRODUCE@challiance.org.
Veterans Food Pantry. First Wednesday of the month 10:00am-12:30pm at American Legion at 249 Broadway in Revere. Available for Revere Veterans ONLY. Would you like to learn more? Please email the coordinator or the Veterans’ Affairs Director.
*Are you in need of safe, reliable transportation due to the COVID crisis? The City of Revere has a program that may be able to help. Email our Outreach Coordinator to learn more about our city’s transportation tools and how you may be eligible.
Press Releases
January
January 20, 2021 City of Revere Announces COVID-19 Vaccination Clinic For Home-based and Other Health Care Workers
December 16, 2020 City of Revere Provides Update on Business Support and Enforcement, Current business restrictions will remain in place, with increased monitoring of compliance
November 2, 2020 Revere Board of Health Updates Capacity Limits for Retail Establishments, City Hiring Additional Contact Tracers to Support Early Isolation and Quarantine
October 7, 2020 Mayor Arrigo Encourages Residents to Celebrate Halloween Safely, Avoiding High-Risk Activities including Traditional Trick-or-Treating, Parties and Haunted Houses
September 30, 2020 City of Revere Launches COVID-19 Community Grant Program for Nonprofits, Second Round of Rental Assistance Now Open For Applications
August 20, 2020 Enforcement Team Will Begin Issuing Citations for Private Gatherings, Closing Parks Facilities Due to Non-Compliance , City Hiring Ambassadors to Support Education and Awareness Efforts
August 8, 2020 In Partnership with the Commonwealth’s Community Tracing Collaborative, Mayor Arrigo Kicks Off Weekend of Action in Response to Recent Uptick in COVID-19 Cases
August 6, 2020 With Positive Test Rates Three Times the State Average, Mayor Arrigo and Revere Board of Health Announce Suspension of All City Events and Programming
July 16, 2020 Emergency Management Team Urges Vigilance as Confirmed Cases in Revere Trend Toward Younger Adults, Federal, State and Local Health Officials Continue to Cite Mask Wearing as Best Defense Against COVID-19
June 25, 2020 Mayor Arrigo Urges Residents to Remain Vigilant as Key Metrics Continue to Trend Positively, Revere Parks & Rec Announce Summer Programming with New Safety Guidelines, Mobile Testing for Seniors Continues
June 8, 2020 Emergency Management Team Provides Revere Reopening Updates, Permit application for outdoor dining now available, revised customer limits in place at large retailers
June 2, 2020 Mayor Arrigo Announces Phased Return of In-Person City Operations, City Parks and Playgrounds to Open with New Guidelines June 8, Street Sweeping Enforcement Resumes June 15
May 28, 2020 Emergency Small Business Program Continues Grant Funding Small Business Office Hours Begin June 2 New Coronavirus Data Available On Revere.org
Mayor Arrigo Outlines Revere Reopening Strategy, Following State Guidelines, City Will Put People First, Support Phased Industry Openings & Expand Testing
May 1, 2020 Mayor Arrigo Announces Expanded Access to Masks, Testing for Residents This Weekend: Pop-Up Mask Distribution in High Traffic Areas Grab-and-Go Mask Operation Begins Tuesday
April 28, 2020 Mayor Arrigo Establishes Raise Up Revere Fund and announces $1.7 Million COVID-19 Relief package, Immediate relief applications available today for small businesses
April 21, 2020 Covid Testing available to all Revere residents, Revere Public Schools closed for rest of academic year, Free food pantry at RMA continues
April 19, 2020 Positive Cases in Revere Approach 700 After National Guard Provides Increased Testing Capacity, Revealing Large Number of Asymptomatic Positive Cases
Key aspects to note in the data below: Revere positivity rates are lower, but still among the highest in the state. Revere per 100K daily case averages have dropped below 20. To get out of the Red Zone as set by the state, Revere needs that number to drop under 8 cases per day per 100,000 people.
There are two ways the Revere Board of Health receives COVID-19 testing data. Every Wednesday, the Massachusetts Department of Public Health publishes aggregated data for every city and town in Massachusetts, which includes 14-day averages of new cases, positivity rates and tests administered. This is the data being used to make decisions about reopening and other public health considerations. The Revere Board of Health is also notified daily by the Department of Public Health of new positive cases of COVID-19 among Revere residents - this information allows us to update our positive case numbers at Revere.org and quickly identify potential clusters of cases that would require intervention from the Board of Health.
Who is being included in Revere's data?
Only Revere residents are included in Revere data. At the time of testing, individuals are required to provide their home address and contact information. Results are provided to the individual and to the municipality where they live, not to the municipality where they were tested.
Who is being tested in Revere?
Our two free testing sites are open to the public regardless of where you live. In our first several weeks of free testing provided at Revere High School, we saw that about 50 percent of tests were being provided to Revere residents, with the other half of tests to residents of neighboring cities and towns.
Isn't it expected that our case numbers will rise when we increase testing?
Yes. We do expect positive case numbers to rise as testing increases. However, we would also expect our positivity rate to decline significantly as we test more asymptomatic individuals.
What does "positivity rate" mean?
Positivity rate is the percentage of positive tests out of all tests administered. For example, if out of every 100 tests administered, 5 of those test results came back positive, that would equate to a 5% positivity rate. The Director of the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Dr. Robert Redfield has defined a "hot spot" as a community with a positivity rate greater than 5%. As the number of tests administered to Revere residents increases, we want to see the positivity rate decline at the same time. This would allow the CIty to begin reconsidering recent decisions related to reopening, like beginning the school year remotely and cancelling all city-sponsored events.
Why are we bringing more testing to Revere? What is the benefit to Revere?
Increased access to testing is one of the most important mechanisms we have to reduce the prevalence of this virus. We have seen around the country and around the world examples where those communities with easier access to testing — along with a relentless culture of social distancing and mask wearing — were able to reduce cases. Scientific and medical studies bear this out. That is why the Governor’s Stop the Spread campaign has already reached 17 communities, and will likely continue. And there is good news. The testing sites are primarily bringing Covid-free individuals. Nearly 98% of tests at the Revere testing sites are coming back negative. Those are the kinds of results that will need to continue if we hope to reopen our economy, our schools, and our lives.
The City has welcomed these testing sites as a means for making our city healthier and safer. The sole financial benefit to the city with testing sites is the improved opportunity to reopen our economy faster, once the data from these sites gives us the ability to do so.
How long does it take to get test results?
Test results are being turned around within 1-2 days. Results are sent by email if provided, or by phone. If you don't receive your results call 3-1-1 and we'll make sure to have a city nurse get back to you.
Who should get tested?
Testing is for people with or without symptoms in hotspots were the prevalence of COVID-19 exceeds what is occurring elsewhere in the state. This tool can be used to identify people that should be quarantined due to virus but currently not with symptoms. It includes:
Anyone that works outside of the house and uses public transportation;
Anyone who doesn't wear a mask consistently outside the home;
Anyone who is concerned they have been in contact with someone who is positive;
Anyone who has been contacted by LBOH and or CTC informing them they have been in contact with someone COVID positive;
Anyone that is leaving the state;
Anyone that is entering the state;
Anyone that is anxious about possibly being in contact with a COVID positive individual.
Also, anyone who wants one.
What kind of Covid test is being used?
The test being used is an Anterior Nasal Swab, which is deemed highly reliable. This is a test to determine whether a person currently is positive with Covid. The testing site does not conduct antibody testing.
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