The COVID Project
The record
- Jurisdiction
- Massachusetts
- Level
- State
- Authority
- Massachusetts General Laws, Part I, Title II, Chapter 17 (Department of Public Health)
- Issued
- 2026-09-28 Sept. 28, 2026
- Effective
- standing (read as 2026-09-28)
- End
- standing
- In force
- Standing since Sept. 28, 2026 (a statutory duty; in force throughout the six quarters)
- Quarters
- 2020 Q22020 Q32020 Q42021 Q12021 Q22021 Q3
2020 Q22020 Q32020 Q42021 Q12021 Q22021 Q3
- Limitation types
- Emergency declarationHealth care ordersQuarantine and isolationStanding duty
- Addressees
- persons generally; owners or persons in control of premises; health care facilities and specified businesses reached by the Commissioner's orders
- Character
- statutory authority
- Collection
- Standing duties: Massachusetts DUT-MA
Operative words
Upon declaration by the governor that an emergency exists which is detrimental to the public health, the commissioner may, with the approval of the governor and the public health council, during such period of emergency, take such action and incur such liabilities as he may deem necessary to assure the maintenance of public health and the prevention of disease.
Penalty
Enforced through the instruments issued under it (G.L. c. 111 penalties; facility licensure; the orders' own penalty clauses)
What it required
Once the Governor declared a public health emergency (March 10, 2020, Ex. MA-001; May 28, 2021, Ex. MA-049), the Commissioner could take any action necessary to maintain public health and prevent disease and could 'establish procedures to be followed during such emergency to insure the continuation of essential public health services and the enforcement of the same,' the authority under which every DPH order of 2020 and 2021 issued. Character as recorded: statutory_authority (enabling power; binds through the orders issued under it).
Retrieval noteExecutive Order No. 591 and COVID-19 Order No. 69 both recite this section beside the Civil Defense Act (Ex. MA-001, MA-048). The Supreme Judicial Court quoted it at note 12 of Desrosiers (DUT-MA-020). The Commissioner's orders issued under it (elective procedures, visitation, long-term care control, face coverings in specified settings, PHE Orders No. 2021-1 to 2021-8) are in the State library (Ex. MA-050, MA-054, MA-056 to MA-067).