Respiratory illness sickens many of the migrants sheltered at Everett hotel

Greater Boston area sees surge in migrants new to U.S.; housing conditions fueling health risks for newcomers

By Steve Freker

EVERETT – A sudden surge in immigrants coming to the Greater Boston area has also brought with it a housing crisis, as well as ramped health risks for those being sheltered in the region. These and other related issues were illustrated this month when multiple respiratory illnesses sickened many of the close to 300 migrants being housed temporarily at the enVision Hotel on Revere Beach Parkway in Everett. According to online reports, the outbreak of illness shows how the limited, cramped quarters can affect those who have no other place to go, doctors and immigrant advocates have reported.

According to reports, the outbreak at the enVision Hotel – located at 1835 Revere Beach Pkwy., right at the Everett-Chelsea city line – began the day after the July 4 holiday, when migrants at the hotel began to get sick. What was quickly identified as a respiratory illness spread rapidly among the nearly 300 migrants.

Representatives of a Chelsea organization, La Colaborativa, which is working as a support group for the migrants, said they enlisted clinicians from Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston to come to the hotel and treat the sickened migrants directly. Although the outbreak quickly multiplied to several respiratory illnesses, with most of the children becoming ill, a representative of La Collaborativa said in an online report that none of those afflicted tested positive for tuberculosis – the most serious and potentially deadly respiratory illness – or COVID-19. Some of those sickened were diagnosed with severe cases of the flu. Infectious disease experts are saying that the migrants are essentially “healthy people,” but the stress of the conditions before they crossed the border to the United States and the relocation process, upping the physical and mental stress, have added up to make them much more vulnerable to illness, according to online info.

While New York City and other places around the country have declared a state of emergency related to the migrant influx, this has not been done in Massachusetts. According to reports, altogether well over 1,000 families of migrants have arrived in Massachusetts in just the past four to five months, conservatively, over 3,000 in all. Many more are expected before the end of 2023 due to the expiration of a more restrictive immigration policy that was not renewed by the federal government. Nationwide, major population centers, including New York City, Chicago and Detroit, are being overwhelmed by numbers of migrants who need housing, food and other basic necessities.

State officials are scrambling to add apartments and shelter space. A dormitory at Salem State University now houses 104 families, according to the Department of Housing and Community Development, which oversees the emergency shelter system. Over 4,300 families, including many not involved in the migrant influx, are being sheltered by the Commonwealth’s services.

Once migrants make it to cities like Boston and are placed in crowded housing units, the risk of contracting illness and becoming seriously sick goes up.

Tuberculosis remains a big concern, as many of the migrants were not well-nourished and would not have responded well to the illness.