BOSTON (WBZ NewsRadio) — At a press conference Friday afternoon, Gov. Charlie Baker reiterated that his administration is not planning any sort of forced shelter-in-place order.
Baker has been asking the public for days now to disregard rumors that such an order might be coming, but in light of New York and California issuing similar orders, reporters asked the governor again.
"I'm gonna take the steps that we take based on the guidance and the advice I get from the medical professionals and the public health professionals and the advisory board the command center's established," Gov. Baker said. "I'm not going to do it just because somebody else did it."
California Gov. Gavin Newsom announced a shelter-in-place order for his state Thursday night. Before he made that announcement, though, over 20 million Californians, including the entire city of San Francisco, were already under shelter-in-place orders.
New York's order isn't a shelter in place, exactly, but rather, a stay-at-home order—a stricter "pause" on non-essential services and gatherings that begins March 22 at 8 p.m.
But Gov. Baker said that the situation on the ground varies greatly from state to state, and a shelter-in-place order wasn't required in Massachusetts at this time.
"I think at this point in time, based on the facts, we're where we belong," Baker said.
Baker said he doesn't want people to feel like they can't go outside, but said if they do, it's important to practice social distancing.
He reminded the public to check the source of anything they hear, and to rely on official agencies for information.
"Everyone needs to get their news from legitimate sources," Baker said. "Please check mass.gov/covid19 for updates."
WBZ NewsRadio's Kim Tunnicliffe (@KimWBZ) reports
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(Photo: Karyn Regal/WBZ NewsRadio)