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Wearing A Mask is Now Your Choice
Now that the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency has ended, masks are optional in most CHA buildings and clinics. Lifting our mask mandate was made after careful review of scientific data and input from our clinical leaders, Patient and Family Advisory Council, healthcare epidemiologist and our senior leadership team.
To protect the health of patients at highest risk, we are still requiring masks in:

  • Infusion rooms at Cambridge and Everett Hospitals

  • Geriatric Psychiatric Unit at Everett Hospital (Lewis 2)

  • And, if you have COVID-19, are visiting anyone with the disease, or if you come in with respiratory symptoms we will ask you to wear a mask as part of standard respiratory etiquette and patient safety
If you want to continue wearing a mask, please do! We think it’s a great idea, especially for people with weaker immune systems. We will have masks available for you. 

If you want your care team to wear a mask when they see you, please let us know when you come in. Space will be provided for you to wait if you are uncomfortable sitting with unmasked patients. 

CHA will continue to monitor COVID-19 levels and may need to reinstate a mask policy in the future. Please visit our COVID web page for more information.
Improving Your Appointment Reminders

You told us you didn’t need as many reminders for in-person visits and we listened. You will now only get two reminders - 5 days and 1 day before your upcoming visit. We’ll remind you by text, unless you told us you prefer a phone call. If your “preferred” phone number is a landline, then you’ll only receive phone calls.

We will only be using one number to reach you - your “preferred” phone number. If you have been hearing from us on more than one number, please let your clinic know what number you want to use as your “preferred” number.

And, we won’t interrupt your Sunday mornings anymore. Texts will be sent at noon on Sunday and phone calls will happen at 1:00 PM. 

Remember to confirm or cancel your appointment when you hear from us. It is important for us to know if you are coming or if you can’t make it. 

Thank you for all your feedback. We hope these changes make it easier to be a CHA patient.
Do You Need Another COVID-19 Vaccine?

Staying fully vaccinated is important - but it can also be confusing. Here’s what the Center for Disease Control (CDC) wants you to know:


  • People 65 years and older may get one additional dose of updated (bivalent) COVID-19 vaccine four months or more after receiving your first updated COVID-19 vaccine.

  • People who are moderately or severely immunocompromised may get one additional dose of updated (bivalent) COVID-19 vaccine two or more months after the first updated vaccine. Talk to your healthcare provider about additional doses.

  • Children 6 months - 5 years may need multiple doses of COVID-19 vaccine to be up to date, including at least one dose of updated (bivalent) Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna vaccine, depending on the number of doses they’ve already had and their age.

For most people, if you received the latest bivalent vaccine, you don’t need to do anything right now. Keep checking the CDC for updated information about when to get your next vaccine.
 
We’ll share more information if we have more COVID-19 cases in our area or when we get closer to flu season in the fall.
Find out why Nurse Manager, Moishe Ragieme, RN believes in CHA!
Three Cheers for Nurses!

Nurses are the backbone of our healthcare system. If you’re a nurse, celebrate nurses month by exploring what CHA has to offer. Join our team and care for those who need it the most. You can feel good about working at CHA because you’ll be making a difference every day.  

Check out all your health information on MyCHArt!
This information is for education only. The information provided here, or through linkages to other sites, is not a substitute for medical or professional care. Please contact your physician or other healthcare provider for medical assistance. For medical emergencies, call 911.