ON A FRIDAY at the end of my social studies class — before the coronavirus shutdown of schools — I received a note from a student. The note began, “Dear […]
Our school curriculum should include all
Posted inHealth Care
Baker talks more about restarting economy
GOV. CHARLIE BAKER on Friday indicated he would probably abide by new guidance from the federal government suggesting no state should relax its social distancing measures until it goes through […]
Posted inCriminal Justice
Lawsuit seeks release of sentenced prisoners during coronavirus
A NEW CLASS ACTION LAWSUIT filed in the state’s highest court by advocates aims to release sentenced and civilly committed prisoners to stem the spread of coronavirus in prisons. Prisoners’ […]
Posted inEconomy
Equifax will pay Massachusetts $18.2 million settlement
THE CREDIT REPORTING agency Equifax will pay $18.2 million to the state of Massachusetts under a settlement reached with Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey over its 2017 data breach. The […]
Posted inPolitics
SJC halves candidate signature requirements
THE SUPREME JUDICIAL COURT on Friday ordered the state to halve the signature requirements for all candidates running for office in the September 1, 2020, primary in light of the […]
Posted inEconomy
Boston Herald furloughs 30 employees
THE MAJORITY OF the Boston Herald’s workforce will be furloughed in the coming weeks, as steep cutbacks in advertising from coronavirus shutdowns continue to devastate already troubled newspapers across the […]
Posted inHealth Care
State ‘Crisis Standards’ for rationing care are not equitable
FACING A POTENTIALLY overwhelming wave of COVID-19 patients, Massachusetts recently released “Crisis Standards of Care” to help hospitals prioritize who will receive scarce medical supplies and services. Intended to provide an […]
Posted inPolitics
The vote must go on
ELECTED OFFICIALS MAY be mindful of the coronavirus pandemic, but the horse race always continues in an emergency, one way or the other. Stephanie Murray at Politico reported on newly-released campaign […]
Posted inThe Download
The vote must go on
Elected officials may be mindful of the coronavirus pandemic, but the horse race always continues in an emergency, one way or the other. Stephanie Murray at Politico reported on newly-released […]
Posted inUncategorized
Spilka, DeLeo slam crisis care standards
VOWING LEGISLATIVE ACTION, the heads of the Massachusetts House and Senate on Thursday night said they agree with lawmakers who do not believe that Baker administration guidance on COVID-19 crisis […]
Posted inOpinion
Heart-wrenching news at Belmont Manor
What follows is a message from Stewart Karger, administrator of Belmont Manor, to the families and loved ones of the residents of the nursing home. The rapid spread of the […]
Posted inOpinion
COVID-19 outbreak shows importance of unions
IF CRISES EXPOSE the underlying dynamics of a society, the coronavirus pandemic has starkly demonstrated the different options available to workers in unions and those who are not. Unionized nurses, […]
Posted inUncategorized
Judge upholds Baker decision on marijuana
SUPERIOR COURT JUDGE Kenneth Salinger ruled on Thursday that Gov. Charlie Baker’s decision to close recreational marijuana stores as non-essential was constitutional, and not subject to second-guessing by him. But […]
Posted inHealth Care
Surge still manageable for Dr. Lee
This is the sixth 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
Essential or non-essential, who decides?
DECIDING WHICH BUSINESSES are essential and which ones are nonessential during a pandemic can sometimes get tricky. In Texas, Gov. Greg Abbott on March 23 banned all medical procedures that are […]
Posted inThe Download
Essential or non-essential, who decides?
Deciding which businesses are essential and which ones are nonessential during a pandemic can sometimes get tricky. In Texas, Gov. Greg Abbott on March 23 banned all medical procedures that […]
Posted inUncategorized
MassLive staff faces furloughs, wage cuts
THE OWNER OF SPRINGFIELD-BASED MassLive notified employees on Wednesday that many of them will be furloughed and have their wages cut. Caroline Harrison, CEO of Advance Local Media LLC, which […]
Posted inEducation
Mass. ed guidance scores well in MIT report
WHILE MASSACHUSETTS SCHOOLS are scrambling — with mixed results — to try to continue lessons for students who are now sequestered at home, the state gets good grades from a […]
Posted inState House News Service
Dems overrule Republicans on eviction legislation
THE HOUSE ADVANCED a compromise bill Wednesday afternoon to temporarily ban almost all eviction and foreclosure proceedings statewide shortly after Democratic negotiators made a breakthrough, but appeared unable to win over […]
Posted inHealth Care
Virus notes: Really, Williamstown a hot spot?
WILLIAMSTOWN, a bucolic town in western Massachusetts whose website barely mentions COVID-19, discovered on Wednesday that new state data suggests the municipality is a hotspot for the disease. Chelsea, Brockton, […]
Posted inHealth Care
Blacks account for high share of Boston COVID-19 cases
AGAINST A BACKDROP of growing concern that coronavirus is disproportionately burdening minority populations, Boston Mayor Marty Walsh released the first set of city data on COVID-19 victims broken down by […]
Posted inHealth Care
Nursing home funding boosted, but is it enough?
AMID OMINOUS REPORTS on COVID-19 tests and deaths, the Baker administration on Wednesday promised to boost funding and support for the state’s struggling long-term care facilities, but a spokeswoman for […]
Posted inCriminal Justice
Judge’s attorney accuses Lelling of political bias
THE ATTORNEY REPRESENTING a judge charged with helping an undocumented immigrant evade federal immigration officials at her court is accusing US Attorney Andrew Lelling of political bias through his public […]
Posted inUncategorized
Two thoughts on death in the COVID-19 age
By Colman M. Herman THE CALL CAME late at night a few weeks ago. It was my niece. Given the hour, the news was bad of course. Her mother — […]