By Chris Van Buskirk with help from Keith Regan and Matt Murphy
12/28/2021
What was the biggest story this year?
| Happening Today |
| | | | | Today | Mass. Lottery Commission, chaired by Treasurer Deborah Goldberg, meets and is expected to hear about November sales and revenues from Executive Director Michael Sweeney. 10 a.m. | Revenue Committee holds a virtual hearing on bills related to seniors and persons with disabilities, mostly involving tax exemptions, abatements, deferrals and credits. | First State Trooper fired for not following vaccine mandate | | | There's always a first. A State Trooper was fired last week after not complying with Gov. Charlie Baker's executive branch vaccine mandate. Andrew Brinker for the Boston Globe reports that the mandate applied to roughly 42,000 workers and required them to show proof of vaccination or seek an exemption by Oct. 17. Boston Globe | | | |
| | | | Travel delays, cancellations continue as people come home from the holidays | | | Delays and cancelations continue to plague travelers as they try to come home from holiday getaways. MassLive's Cassie McGrath reports that Logan Airport reported 32 delays and 33 cancelations as of early Monday morning. That's a significant decrease from the issues people faced on Sunday, but no less annoying for the unlucky few who found themselves stuck. MassLive | | | |
| | | | Child care costs take center stage as pandemic continues | | | These days, your likely to spend more money on child care than in-state four-year public college tuition. Madeleine Pearce for the MetroWest Daily News reports that the average annual cost for infant care in the state is $20,913, the second highest in the nation and accounts for 22.7 percent of the state's median family income. More from Pearce: "It's also between $4,747 and $6,505 more expensive than the price tag of a four-year in-state program in the University of Massachusetts system. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services recommends affordable child care cost no more than 7% of a family’s total income." MetroWest Daily News | | | |
| | | | ‘Serious look:’ Salem’s Driscoll considering statewide run | | | She’s thinking about it. Salem Mayor Kim Driscoll says she’s taking a ‘serious look’ at a run for statewide office – most likely lieutenant governor – as fellow mayors and others press her to jump into an increasingly crowded Democratic field for the number two post, Dustin Luca of the Salem News reports. Driscoll begins her record-tying fifth term in office next month. Salem News | | | |
| | | | Guard members start arriving at hospitals | | | Members of the Massachusetts National Guard started arriving at hospitals across the state to help relieve pressure brought on by the pandemic. Staff at WBUR report that roughly 20 Guard members received orientation Monday morning before heading to hospitals run by the Worcester's UMass Memorial Health. Hospitals were also ordered to stop or postpone non-urgent procedures, an order which took effect yesterday. WBUR | | | |
| | | | Free for all: Many hats expected to be tossed as Edwards leave city council | | | A crowd is forming. Danny McDonald of the Globe takes a look at the potential field of candidates for the District 1 seat on the Boston City Council that Lydia Edwards will soon vacate to become a state senator and finds two candidates already declared and a potential group of others considering a bid. Boston Globe | | | |
| | | | Ramping up: St. Vincent reopens psychiatry beds ahead of nurses’ return | | | St. Vincent Hospital in Worcester says it is reopening a dozen inpatient beds in its psychiatric unit ahead of next week’s final vote by the Mass. Nurses Association to ratify a new contract and end one of the state’s longest strikes. Isabel Sami of the Telegram & Gazette and Tom Matthews of MassLive report the beds have been out of service since August and that their absence has been a major source of concern for advocates in Central Mass. | | | |
| | | | Connecticut guv announces free at-home tests, N95 masks | | | Our neighbors down south are also dealing with a spike in COVID cases as a result of the omicron variant. Hartford Courant's Daniela Altimari reports that Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont announced the state plans to distribute 3 million free at-home COVID tests and 6 million N95 masks in an effort to curb the spread of the virus. Hartford Courant | | | |
| | | | Respect the voters: Civil rights group slams Holyoke rule keeping newly elected out of office | | | Opposition is growing. Lawyers for Civil Rights has joined the battle against a Holyoke ordinance that is preventing two newly elected members of the city council from taking office because they are also employees of the city’s school system, Dusty Christensen of the Daily Hampshire Gazette reports. The group is urging the city to “respect the will of the voters” and notes that the rule is barring one of the most diverse slates of candidates ever elected from being sworn into office. Daily Hampshire Gazette | | | |
| | | | Long testing lines in Worcester | | | The rush to get a COVID test during the holiday season has been brutal. Long lines at testing centers around the state have been common scenes. It's no different in Worcester. Telegram & Gazette's Christine Peterson reports that the free COVID-19 testing line at the Mercantile Center stretched around the courtyard and down Commercial Street on Monday. Telegram & Gazette | | | |
| | | | Local businesses in Nubian Square grappling with rising prices | | | Local business in Nubian Square are facing crippling supply chain issues as they look to carry forward in the second year of the pandemic. Jake Bentzinger for GBH News reports that Soleil restaurant founders Cheryl Straughter and Keith Motley are struggling with rising prices like beef which Straughter said she used to buy for $4.29 per pound and now pays $7.29. GBH News | | | |
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