Increasing coronavirus cases throughout Pittsfield landed the city back on the state's red list of communities with high risk for coronavirus transmission — a title the city hasn't held since January.

The seven-person team of Pittsfield's Public Health Department is seeing a shift in the public's response to their efforts to track the coronavirus. 

"Compared to the first time around, we're getting a lot of pushback as far as cooperation goes," Pittsfield Public Health Nurse Manager Kayla Donnelly said. "Some people just won't even answer us. Some people will hang up on us or — and I'm just going to come out and say — people are verbally abusive towards us a lot."

All students, faculty, staff and visitors will be required to wear a mask at all times inside the Berkshire Arts and Technology Charter School building. In addition, according to Federal mandate, each student must wear a mask at all times on school buses and in the office of the School Nurse.

The Massachusetts Public Health Council was expected to take a vote Wednesday that would formally repeal state masking regulations, but the council has decided to table that vote until its September meeting.