Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey rolled out a new website Wednesday morning to provide support and resources to front-line workers amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
The website, FrontlineMA.org, was created in collaboration with HubSpot and IDEO and offers many resources to help workers get protective gear, priority testing, meals, safe housing, self care advice, and child care, Healey said.
Her office worked with police, firefighters, nurses, and other front-line workers to build the website, she said
“Our front-line workers who are literally risking their lives need to know they have the support and that we are there for them,” Healey said in a telephone interview.
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The website took one week to build, she said. Her office reached out to HubSpot on April 8 and IDEO on April 10 after hearing about the needs of front-line workers.
“I’m really proud of the quick work of the team and our partners out there to make this a resource to the public,” she said.
The website features several “how-tos,” offering guidance on self-quarantining and priority testing, she said. It also includes regional lists of restaurants offering free and discounted meals to workers, directs workers how to receive housing if they are exposed to COVID-19, and offers ways for the public to donate meals and for hotels and bed-and-breakfast owners to provide housing for workers.
The website includes information for health care facilities and first responders to request personal protection equipment, according to Healey’s office.
“We wanted to provide easy, accessible ways for the public to help,” she said.
The website also features a “hero wall” for people to show their support for front-line workers through messages, photos, and posters, she said.
Several groups representing front-line workers commended Healey for providing resources for these workers.
“As workers navigate through this unprecedented moment in history, a vetted and trusted site that recognizes how this crisis is impacting workers in multiple ways is critical,” Tim Foley, executive vice president of 1199SEIU United Healthcare Workers East, said in a press release issued by Healey’s office. “FrontlineMA.org puts power in the hands of those on the frontlines who are looking for answers and support.”
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Chief Brian Kyes, president of the Massachusetts Major City Chiefs of Police, thanked Healey in the statement for her support of front-line workers.
“This website provides information and resources that our front-line workers need right now as the fight the COVID-19 pandemic,” he said in the statement.
Andrew Stanton can be reached at andrew.stanton@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter@_andrewstanton