STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE GOV. CHARLIE BAKER on Wednesday rolled out a seven-year plan to boost school funding by more than $1 billion dollars, including what his education secretary described […]
Baker unveils school funding plan
Posted inTransportation
Cambridge Street could be in for lots of changes
CAMBRIDGE STREET in Boston is starting to look a lot like a public policy war zone. As it runs from Bowdoin Street down toward the Longfellow Bridge, Cambridge Street passes […]
Posted inHealth Care, Politics
Baker backs rate-setting for high-cost drugs
THE BAKER ADMINISTRATION is seeking legislative authority for MassHealth to negotiate prices directly with the manufacturers of high-cost drugs that have little or no competition and, if that effort fails […]
Posted inThe Codcast
Episode 135: Dreyfus highlights Blue Cross experiments
Andrew Dreyfus, the CEO of Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts, is excited about a series of initiatives the state’s largest health insurer is pursuing to improve care while simultaneously […]
Posted inEnvironment
Baker takes new tack on taxes
GOV. CHARLIE BAKER, normally a skeptic when it comes to tax hikes, sprinkled new taxes and new tax revenue throughout the annual budget proposal he filed on Wednesday. A proposed increase […]
Posted inEducation
Globe series exposes dismal reality about Boston schools
WE DIDN’T NEED a multi-part, multimedia series of reports to know the Boston Public Schools fail to deliver a first-rate education to many students. Achievement scores and college completion rates […]
Posted inThe Download
Globe series exposes dismal reality about Boston schools
We didn’t need a multi-part, multimedia series of reports to know the Boston Public Schools fail to deliver a first-rate education to many students. Achievement scores and college completion rates […]
Posted inEnvironment
Region’s power generators using more oil, coal
FRIGID CONDITIONS led the region’s power generators to use more oil and coal than usual over the last few days, but as temperatures edged up Tuesday the fuel mix is […]
Posted inTransportation
Baker bill would let police pull cars over for seatbelt violations
GOV. CHARLIE BAKER filed road safety legislation on Tuesday that would require drivers to use electronic devices in hands-free mode only, mandate side guards and additional mirrors on large state-owned […]
Posted inEducation
State board approves novel charter expansion plan
THE STATE EDUCATION BOARD approved a proposal to allow a New Bedford charter school to expand as part of an unusual partnership with the city’s district schools that would break […]
Posted inHealth Care
Dreyfus highlights Blue Cross experiments
ANDREW DREYFUS, the CEO of Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts, is excited about a series of initiatives the state’s largest health insurer is pursuing to improve care while simultaneously […]
Posted inThe Download
The Codcast: Dreyfus highlights Blue Cross experiments
Andrew Dreyfus, the CEO of Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts, is excited about a series of initiatives the state’s largest health insurer is pursuing to improve care while simultaneously […]
Posted inOpinion
More housing alone won’t solve housing crisis
CHARLINE LAKE has not unpacked her boxes. It has been more than a year since she moved to Arlington after her apartment building in Somerville’s Davis Square was sold. The […]
Posted inOpinion
Boston’s port needs attention
IN A CITY AND REGION with a booming innovation economy, we run the risk of missing opportunities for growth and improvement that are hiding in plain sight. For example, most […]
Posted inOpinion
Boston falls short on ‘inclusion’ classrooms
BOSTON TEACHERS ARE passionate about fulfilling the promise of every child, and that’s why we support robust inclusion programs. Inclusion means that every student has an equal opportunity to learn, […]
Posted inHealth Care
Remaking health care by redefining ‘good health’
LAST MONTH’S FEDERAL COURT ruling declaring that Affordable Care Act is unconstitutional was yet another alarm-raiser for Obamacare customers around the country. Again, in the delicate realm of subsidized insurance, […]
Posted inOpinion
Aging in place is not the way to go
MOST OF US can expect to live longer than ever before. This longevity bonus gives us more time to build the society we want, and we must start by considering […]
Posted inOpinion
Ed funding problem most acute in low-income communities
IT’S A PROMISING SIGN that fixing how Massachusetts funds our K-12 schools has moved to the top of the agenda on Beacon Hill. The governor and Legislature acknowledge that the time […]
Posted inUncategorized
Millionaire tax back in play
THE BACKERS of the millionaire tax are preparing to mount a second campaign to get it passed, but this time they are using an approach designed to sidestep the legal […]
Posted inNews Analysis
Shutdown sending Trump poll numbers down
“IF WE DON’T GET what we want … I am proud to shut down the government for border security, Chuck.” That, of course, was President Donald Trump in an unexpectedly […]
Posted inUncategorized
Will Gillette get nicked or boosted by #MeToo ad?
IF THERE WAS any doubt that heated debate and division can break out over nearly any topic in American life today, it’s been dispelled by the brouhaha over a new […]
Posted inThe Download
Will Gillette get nicked or boosted by #MeToo ad?
If there was any doubt that heated debate and division can break out over nearly any topic in American life today, it’s been dispelled by the brouhaha over a new […]
Posted inOpinion
Ranked choice far superior to top-two
In “Let’s get off the ranked-choice bandwagon,” Paul Schlichtman argues that the growing calls for Massachusetts to adopt ranked choice voting are misguided. Instead of ranked choice, he wants our […]
Posted inOpinion
Simple T reforms could have big impact
IN 2017, the “Race the T” campaign illuminated what many commuters already know—outrunning the Green Line on foot is not only a feasible pursuit, but a relatively easy one. Sitting […]