Health Care

Worcester city officials ordered the Walmart Supercenter store at 25 Tobias Boland Way to be temporarily closed after 23 employees tested positive for coronavirus.

More than 50 nurses at Saint Vincent Hospital in Worcester have taken what the hospital says are voluntary furloughs.

Marlborough-based Hologic Inc. announced Wednesday it has developed a new coronavirus test it plans to distribute hospital, public health and reference laboratories, which the medical device firm expects to dramatically increase testing capabilities for the virus.

Worcester County had 24 new reported coronavirus-related deaths Wednesday — setting another new high — and 301 new cases, according to Massachusetts Department of Public Health data. 

UMass Memorial Medical Center in Worcester has expanded the number of COVID-19 patients being treated with the blood plasma of someone who recovered from coronavirus.

UMass Medical School in Worcester is expected to furlough as many as 100 employees for possibly up to six months, leadership announced in a memo on Wednesday.

Boston Scientific said at the start of April it would temporarily reduce some employee work schedules and reduce executive and board pay, citing an expected effect of medical offices delaying elective surgeries. But the coronavirus pandemic hasn't hurt the Marlborough medical device maker's revenue, at least through the quarter ending March 31.

Worcester County had 14 newly reported coronavirus-related deaths Tuesday and 255 new cases, according to the Massachusetts Department of Public Health.

Most public life in Massachusetts will remain shut down until at least May 18, adding at least another two weeks to business closures as the state launches an effort to create a roadmap for a phased reopening amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Derek Canton has made a shift during the coronavirus pandemic from developing a restaurant app for dining rooms to one offering a safer and more secure method for takeout and delivery, he said during an interview on the WBJ Podcast.