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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 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 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 SAM DRYSDALE

BOSTON – Top Senate Democrats ruled that policies with majority support meant to target the toxic and cancer-causing chemicals known as PFAS were outside the scope of a major health care bill that the chamber passed last week, before making a...

By DOMENIC POLI

ORANGE — Later this year, North Quabbin residents can expect the Health Center Plaza to have an outpatient clinic providing specialized mental health services for child victims of sexual abuse and their families.The Children’s Advocacy Center of...

By EMILEE KLEIN

Two bills presented by Rep. Lindsay Sabadosa that passed last week will support families who have experienced pregnancy loss by adding paid pregnancy loss leave to the Massachusetts Earned Sick Time Law and establishing a public information campaign...

By JIASHAN ZHENG

Despite ongoing reform efforts, the Massachusetts prison health care system continues to be confronted with significant challenges, deeply affecting the well-being of incarcerated individuals and complicating their reentry into society...

By Carla CharterThe Dufault family has had three generations of doctors, all of whom have been graduates from Tufts University. This family of doctors had their beginnings in Athol.Dr. Paul F. Dufault of Worcester, an internist, said his grandfather,...

By LIESEL NYGARD

SOUTH DEERFIELD — Before a room filled with local health care professionals, state Sen. Jo Comerford shared details about legislation she’s filed this session in hopes of bolstering the health care system to “do well by” those physicians and, in turn,...

By COLIN A. YOUNG

As policymakers this week examine a law meant to keep health care cost growth within sustainable bounds, a new report makes clear that the health care sector has a double-sided problem – the cost of care is pushing it out of reach for many...

By LIESEL NYGARD

The state Office of Emergency Medical Services has suspended the paramedic license held by Northfield EMS Chief and Orange EMS Capt. Mark Fortier, but town officials say paramedic staffing levels are sufficient to ensure continued ambulance...

By ALEXANDER MACDOUGALL

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is considering loosening isolation requirements for people who test positive for COVID-19, meaning they would no longer have to stay at home for at least five days when infected with the virus.Under the...

By DOMENIC POLI

GREENFIELD — Four women representing western Massachusetts in the state Legislature visited Greenfield Community College on Monday for a panel discussion about health care with second-year nursing students.State Sen. Jo Comerford was joined by state...

By DOMENIC POLI

The Democrat representing the 2nd Congressional District of Massachusetts has teamed up with a Republican colleague from Florida to sponsor a bill aimed at making it easier for Americans to get medically necessary foods.Jim McGovern and John...

By MADDIE FABIAN

Less than a month after it began enforcing a longstanding policy restricting the use of anesthesia during colonoscopies and other procedures, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts is pausing that action after physicians statewide lobbied the insurer...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

Even with less severe cases of COVID-19 than the past two years and a marked decrease since last fall in RSV, officially known as respiratory syncytial virus, a surge in flu cases is keeping Cooley Dickinson Hospital’s emergency department as busy as...

By CHRIS LISINSKI

BOSTON — Reining in gun violence, increasing access to housing and health supports for migrant families, and studying the health effects of decommissioning the Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station are among the policies the Massachusetts Medical Society...

By SAM DRYSDALE

BOSTON — The state’s drug overdose crisis is persisting at record high levels, exacerbated by a “poisoned drug supply” that isn’t just affecting those who use opioids anymore.There were 2,323 confirmed and estimated fatal opioid-related overdoses...

By ALISON KUZNITZ

BOSTON — Pregnant and postpartum MassHealth members are slated to gain access to doula coverage this spring as state officials aim to tackle worsening maternal health outcomes.Doula coverage will be offered during labor and delivery, as well as for...