DR. MONICA BHAREL, commissioner of the state Department of Public Health, was leading the state’s defense against the coronavirus when she learned an important lesson: no one is immune from the disease. Rejoining […]
Bharel draws on personal experience with COVID-19
Posted inOpinion
Breaking down silos that separate students by race and class
AT A RECENT press briefing, Massachusetts education commissioner Jeff Riley observed that the crisis of COVID-19 school closures is also “an amazing opportunity to think differently about how we educate […]
Posted inCriminal Justice
Judge seeks COVID-19 test data on ICE detainees
US DISTRICT COURT Judge William Young is ordering the Bristol County sheriff’s office to begin submitting reports on the number of immigration detainees in its custody who have been tested […]
Posted inEconomy
The Commonwealth must help businesses of color
PEOPLE OF COLOR are under siege in Massachusetts. The COVID-19 pandemic not only threatens their lives at disproportionate rates, but the economic standstill threatens their livelihood as well. We cannot […]
Posted inCriminal Justice
Do civil commitments make sense in a pandemic?
IT’S HAMPDEN COUNTY Sheriff Nick Cocchi versus Prisoners’ Legal Services, round two, this time with a global pandemic thrown in. The sheriff and the legal services group have long been battling […]
Posted inThe Download
Do civil commitments make sense in a pandemic?
It’s Hampden County Sheriff Nick Cocchi versus Prisoners’ Legal Services, round two, this time with a global pandemic thrown in. The sheriff and the legal services group have long been […]
Posted inEconomy
Coronavirus campus unrestÂ
APRIL, TRADITIONALLY A time of excitement and possibility in higher education, is instead proving to be the cruelest month for US colleges and universities. High school seniors normally would be […]
Posted inHealth Care
Nurse frustrated with mask directives
MARK BRODEUR loves his work as an intensive care and emergency room nurse at Berkshire Medical Center in Pittsfield, but he is frustrated by directives coming from administrators on how […]
Posted inOpinion
How are community college students different?
An open letter to the president of the United States, members of Congress, the US Secretary of Education, all 50 state governors, state legislators, state education secretaries, and commissioners. THANK […]
Posted inHealth Care
Virus notes: Biggest one-day jump in new cases
TWO OF THE KEY INDICATORS for determining whether the state is nearing the end of its COVID-19 surge sent conflicting signals on Thursday, as hospitalizations declined slightly while new cases […]
Posted inEconomy
City and town budgets hit hard
AS COVID-19 RAVAGES local economies, cities and towns are falling into a sea of red ink – and trying to figure out how to deal with it. While the public […]
Posted inHealth Care
COVID-19 fear keeping ill people away from ERs
A TRIO OF HOSPITAL EXECUTIVES joined Gov. Charlie Baker on Thursday to warn against an alarming new trend – people with serious medical conditions staying away from hospitals out of […]
Posted inOpinion
Dr. Lee: We’re busy but in good shape
This is the seventh conversation between Dr. Jarone Lee, a frontline critical care and emergency physician at Massachusetts General Hospital and associate professor at Harvard Medical School, and Dr. Paul […]
Posted inUncategorized
Trump bars immigrants seeking permanent residency
PRESIDENT TRUMP CONTINUESÂ to rehaul immigration in the name of coronavirus. He signed the much-anticipated executive order barring some immigration to the United States Wednesday night, saying it needed to be […]
Posted inThe Download
Trump bars immigrants seeking permanent residency
President Trump continues to rehaul immigration in the name of coronavirus. He signed the much-anticipated executive order barring some immigration to the United States Wednesday night, saying it needed to […]
Posted inHealth Care
Sudders: Deaths common at nursing homes
GOV. CHARLIE BAKER’S point person on COVID-19 tried to provide some context on Wednesday for the rising number of deaths at nursing homes. Marylou Sudders, the secretary of health and […]
Posted inEnvironment
Net-zero target gets mixed reviews
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENTAL Affairs Secretary Kathleen Theoharides used the occasion of Earth Day on Wednesday to finalize the state’s new net-zero greenhouse gas emissions limit, but […]
Posted inHealth Care
Virus notes: 22 mayors back vote-by-mail
TWENTY-TWO MASSACHUSETTS MAYORS signed onto a letter urging lawmakers to adopt some form of vote-by-mail system for the fall elections. “Our constituents deserve the opportunity to exercise their right to […]
Posted inHealth Care
Baker hints at ‘rules of road’ for reopening
GOV. CHARLIE BAKER indicated on Wednesday that some of the state’s businesses could begin reopening after the COVID-19 surge concludes as long as they comply with rules his administration is […]
Posted inEconomy
Deferred dreams for black, brown business owners
MIGUEL VARGAS runs the Bajucol Dance Studio in East Boston, a business out of step with the social distancing required to fend off COVID-19. The two-year-old enterprise shut down in March. Vargas has tried hosting classes online, but few customers have […]
Posted inUncategorized
Tran linked to police investigation
STATE SEN. DEAN TRAN has created a legal defense fund as he faces both a campaign finance-related investigation and an unrelated criminal investigation. On March 26, the Massachusetts Senate stripped […]
Posted inUncategorized
Baker’s ‘test and trace’ gambit
GOV. CHARLIE BAKER, a data and systems guy from way back, has placed a big bet that a methodical approach to the coronavirus pandemic is what it will take to […]
Posted inThe Download
Baker’s ‘test and trace’ gambit
Gov. Charlie Baker, a data and systems guy from way back, has placed a big bet that a methodical approach to the coronavirus pandemic is what it will take to […]
Posted inOpinion
Post-COVID reimaginings
IN THIS GRIM TIME of a worldwide pandemic, while properly preoccupied by the present crisis, government leaders and leaders of major institutions must also look to the future. As we […]