As respiratory illness season begins to ramp up, nursing facilities are reminded to remain diligent in their infection control practices to limit the spread of COVID-19 to residents and staff. Nursing facilities must comply with the DPH’s guidance on Organizational Policies and Procedures for Mitigating Respiratory Illness and continue to identify and monitor respiratory illness metrics to indicate when there are increased levels which may necessitate implementing these infection control measures. One possible metric is the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority (MWRA) Wastewater COVID-19 Tracking which measures the SARS-CoV2 levels. The data as of December 1, 2025, is found in the table below.
Additionally, the DPH Respiratory Illness Dashboard provides information on respiratory illness (COVID-19, influenza and RSV) cases including emergency room visits and hospitalizations. As of November 29, 2025, cases of RSV and COVID-19 are very low and cases of influenza are low.
CDC Resource for Tracking Acute Respiratory Illness
The CDC acute respiratory illness metric offers a comprehensive measurement of respiratory viruses (COVID-19, flu, RSV) and other respiratory infections. The metric can be found at: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)'s Respiratory Illness Data Channel.
Nursing facilities can use these metrics to guide infection prevention and control measures. When there are increased levels of respiratory virus activity in the community nursing facilities should consider implementing additional prevention measures.