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By GREG VINE

ATHOL – Heywood Healthcare held a stakeholder meeting Thursday to discuss its future now that it has emerged from Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection as a standalone entity, meaning it will remain as an independent health care organization.In...

By ERIN-LEIGH HOFFMAN and MADISON SCHOFIELD

Thanks to funding from the Massachusetts Office of Environmental Justice and Equity, Franklin County organizations will receive 21 of the total 213 air quality sensors being distributed statewide to help protect public health and fill in gaps in local...

By SAMUEL GELINAS

NORTHAMPTON — State Rep. Lindsay Sabadosa says doulas are the “gold standard” of birthing resources — and now access to these “birthing coaches” is set to expand thanks to provisions included in a new sweeping maternal health bill signed into law late...

By ALEXA LEWIS

Election season is quickly approaching, but for some community members, making their voices heard at the polls can come with unexpected challenges.Among those at Transhealth, increasingly strict voter ID laws and a feeling of burgeoning national...

By ALISON KUZNITZ

As the state health insurance marketplace prepares for open enrollment in November, officials say the steep cost of popular weight-loss drugs has fueled higher premiums.Increased provider rates also contributed to the rise in insurance premiums...

By DOMENIC POLI

Intervention from the largest-ever addiction prevention and treatment program produced a 15% reduction in non-fatal opioid overdoses, but no difference in the number of overdose deaths, according to a report published by the New England Journal of...

By CHRIS LISINSKI

BOSTON – Infection control plans, uniform patient transfer forms, heightened scrutiny of private equity and much more headline a compromise long-term care reform bill that lawmakers expect to send to Gov. Maura Healey this week.Nearly a month after...

By MADISON SCHOFIELDand ALEXA LEWIS

An extensive series of safety standards being proposed by the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration is leading to howls of disapproval from rural fire departments, whose leaders are warning there’s no way they can implement the changes...

By ERIN-LEIGH HOFFMAN

More towns across Franklin County have started the process of installing outdoor naloxone cabinets to increase accessibility to the life-saving drug.The Franklin Regional Council of Governments (FRCOG) through its Collaborative Public Health District...

By COLIN A. YOUNG

BOSTON — The Department of Public Health is moving on multiple fronts to address the elevated risks of mosquito-borne illnesses this year, including spraying pesticides from trucks in southern Worcester County and from planes in Plymouth County...

By ALISON KUZNITZ

BOSTON – State officials plan to launch a voluntary program by the end of the year to support health care workers recovering from substance use disorder and other mental health conditions.The forthcoming Unified Recovery and Monitoring Program...

By ADA DENENFELD KELLY

ATHOL—Eight years ago, Mariah O’Leary lost her fiancé to addiction. This past February, she lost her best friend as well.O’Leary – who identifies as someone in recovery – sent in photos of her late fiancé and friend, as well as photos of her and her...

By ALISON KUZNITZ

Massachusetts is about to get a new law to shield firefighters from toxic chemicals contained in their protective equipment and eventually phase out the use of PFAS that’s been linked to cancer.Gov. Maura Healey announced Wednesday that she plans to...

Due to smoke from Canadian wildfires, the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP) has issued an air quality alert effective until at least 11:59 p.m. tonight in five counties in western and central Massachusetts.Smoke is...

Staff Report

GARDNER – Heywood Healthcare recently received high ratings for its Gardner and Athol hospitals through the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS).The federal agency recently released the annual Hospital Quality Star Ratings, which evaluates...

By ALEXA LEWIS

SPRINGFIELD — When shift change rolls around at the Baystate Medical Center, across from the organization’s corporate offices, Peter Banko can be found sitting on a bench nearby. When physicians, nurses or other staff notice him there, they often ask...

By COLIN A. YOUNG

BOSTON — As frustrations between House and Senate Democrats mounted Wednesday night into Thursday morning, House Speaker Ronald Mariano decided to take his hospital oversight bill and a prescription drug bill that the Senate has prioritized off the...

By ALEXANDER MACDOUGALL

WILLIAMSBURG — Over the period of a single year, Osa and Christopher Flory found themselves cycling through three different primary care physicians.After their longtime doctor retired, the Williamsburg couple found another Cooley Dickinson Hospital...

By ALISON KUZNITZ and SAM DRYSDALE

BOSTON – Aiming to save more Bay Staters from fatal opioid-related overdoses, the Senate passed an addiction and substance use disorder bill Tuesday featuring a controversial policy allowing cities and towns to open safe injection sites.Senate...

By COLIN A. YOUNG

BOSTON – Gov. Maura Healey gave her OK to sweeping statewide policy changes Monday afternoon as part of the overdue fiscal year 2025 budget, signing free community college, online Mass Lottery products, free rides on regional transit authorities and...