i’m moving from out of state to massachusetts and my employer is providing health insurance, covering 50% of the cost through tufts direct gold. can anyone tell me how the coverage is? is it worth the 200+ a month? can i get a lot of coverage / see specialists like the dermatologist without jumping through hoops with referrals? is it a good health insurance in MA or are there better options that would make sense for me to pay out of pocket

Hi, just wondering if anyone recently had their basement finished. I was quoted 85k to finish 890sq ft, included in the quote is a full bathroom, 2 offices and an open space.

Could you share your experience? Thanks in advance

Newton-Wellesley Hospital cancer cluster + local environmental history = something doesn’t add up

Posting this in case anyone has more info or experiences to share to help the people seeking answers. At least five nurses from the same maternity ward at Newton-Wellesley Hospital have been diagnosed with brain tumors. Officials say they’ve looked and found nothing, but here’s what I’ve found so far:

Breast cancer cluster: Back in the 1980s and 1990s, Newton had a statistically significant spike in breast cancer cases. It was enough to trigger a state-level investigation, but it kind of faded away without answers (a 1997 research report softly “closed” it, from what I can find).

Silver Lake toxic waste: Newton used to have a lake called Silver Lake in the Nonantum area. It was filled in and paved over by the 1950s because of toxic waste from a nearby mill. This is documented. Some of the debris used came from the Storrow Drive construction.

Hospital proximity to Lake: Newton-Wellesley Hospital is just 2.7 miles from where Silver Lake used to be. That’s close enough for possible vapor intrusion, soil contamination, or even old fill material to be involved.

The water source is clean: The hospital uses water from the MWRA (not local wells), so this isn’t a tap water issue. But vapor, air circulation, or contaminated building materials could still expose long-term staff. Chemical vapors can seep up from contaminated soil or buried waste in a process called vapor intrusion. Volatile compounds like trichloroethylene (once used in nearby mill sites) can rise through the ground and enter buildings, particularly older ones. These are neurotoxic and cancer-causing chemicals which can damage DNA in brain cells over time. Hospital staff who work long shifts in the same rooms, especially in areas with poor airflow like maternity wards, may be breathing in low levels every day.

If the contamination is under the building, like in soil vapor, or behind walls and under floors, it won’t show up unless they’re specifically testing for vapor intrusion or doing deep sampling, right?

I’m not saying I have the answer, and I’m not an expert at all but this combo of historical pollution, past cancer clusters, and now multiple nurses getting brain tumors? It feels like someone should be looking a little deeper.

Here’s the paper that mentioned the cancer cluster & the silver lake toxicity. https://newtonfreelibrary.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/History_7th_Ed.pdf

Could be way off base. Just thought I’d post in case it sparks ideas. I don’t think this is a random occurrence (I study brains, and environmental toxicants seem like a prime factor).

Update: I know the Silver Lake hypothesis is a leap (and I agree with a lot of the comments), but just having this conversation brought up things I didn’t expect, like the 2009 chemical spill where the hospital garage is, next to the maternity ward (I think?). Or the fact that there was once a radioactive isotope lab (B22) in the basement of the North Wing—probably less relevant, and maybe only fascinating because I can’t find much on it! None of this proves anything on its own, but it’s interesting how many potential exposures are buried in the history of the building.

Add in the other points that folks have brought up like the demographics, working long hours in a sealed unit with high stress and disrupted sleep—factors that could make even small environmental exposures more impactful—all great points to add into the mix for consideration.

I saw this fly over Billerica twice in the last hour. Not sure if anyone knows more about this. If you zoom in it looks like something is hanging off the plane. I thought aerial refueling but feels like this is too altitude

I saw this wonderful bagel shop in Norwood that I love post this video of a mother with her daughter stealing a t-shirt earlier today. If anyone has any idea who she is, please report her to authorities or the owner. Please repost this to spread the awareness.

https://www.facebook.com/bagelsbyperry/videos/674439385070995

I will be about to graduate from umass Lowell With no job. I’m doing my masters in CS. I’m applying to 100’s of jobs everyday and I find no hope. I have 50,000 usd of loan and I would be homeless by the end of my grad. I feel like I’m stuck. Can someone help me out with anything.

Im sure most here don't care but there was some speculation/debate over it in the local subs lol. Can confirm they landed here and also more curiously two F18 Hornets also arrived about an hour or so after this was taken.

Hi, I am 17 years old and started the process of looking into cars and insurance. I was going to purchase a vehicle but I learned that I cannot sign the title or anything that says the car is mine. I have to have an adult sign the bill of sale. Which is fine my issue is my parents do not want me on their insurance which is fine but I learned I can not get my own insurance in mass I have to have them connected to my car through their plan? Is there anyway I can get my own insurance and sign the title of the car or do I have to wait until my eighteenth birthday?

Under new regulations from the AG's office, starting September 2, Massachusetts businesses have to clearly disclose:

• The total price of a product, including any mandatory charges or fees, whenever pricing information is presented to a consumer and prior to requiring a consumer to provide their personal information.  
• The nature, purpose, and amount of any charges that may be imposed on a transaction.
• Whether any charges are optional or waivable, along with readily available instructions on how to avoid any optional or waivable charges. 

Whenever pricing information is presented to a consumer, businesses must also display the total price of a product more prominently than any other pricing information.

For trial offers and automatic renewals, businesses have to disclose:

• Any charges a consumer may incur as a result of accepting a trial offer.
• Any products for which charges may be incurred as a result of accepting a trial offer. 
• Instructions for consumers to reject or cancel a trial offer before being charged. 
• The calendar date by which a consumer must reject or cancel a trial offer to avoid being charged. 
• The calendar date on which a consumer will be charged if the consumer fails to reject or cancel a trial offer. 

And for any subscription-based product or service, businesses have to disclose:

• What consumers will be charged for and if any charges will increase after a certain period, including trial periods. 
• If charges will occur on a regular basis unless cancelled by a consumer.
• Instructions on how to cancel a recurring charge or subscription.

I know this has been asked before, but the posts i found were from over a year ago and the process has changed. How do you possibly get an appointment with the Mass RMV for an out of state license transfer? I go through the website to book an appointment, they send me an email... and I click the link in the email and it says there are no appointments available. Is the pool they're pulling from for ALL locations across the state? this is unclear?

Do i keep clicking the same link over and over again every morning to see if it refreshes until the link expires? I'm not sure what i'm supposed to do. the link is only good for a few days.

Before anyone says anything about AAA this is not something that AAA can do. It says on the mass gov website they can, this is an error (big surprise) but the AAA website and the Mass RMV website say they cannot, also they say they cannot if you call AAA. So that is not an option.

This is my house, in central mass. I have to give up whitewater paddling on Saturday to drive into Boston and help be part of the solution. See you at the Hands Off event! Worth it.

The person who created these no longer has a booth at the Sturbridge flea market. Does anyone have any information as to where they have relocated to? Please and thanks!

TLDR:

Today, anyone with a credit card can buy location data from YOUR phone through unregulated data brokers. That includes domestic abusers, right-wing organizations, and anti-abortion extremists. And we can finally change that this session.

A bill called the Location Shield Act would prohibit that sale of private information and it's being heard by a Joint Committee on April 9. I've included some information about the bill + how you can help it get passed below.

Currently, there are no federal laws explicitly prohibiting the sale of cellphone location data. Also, 92% of MA voters support passing a law to prohibit the sale of personal location data (source).

Why is this important?

Given the current political climate and the rise of extremism across the country, it’s more important than ever that we protect our location data from being bought and sold by unregulated parties. Especially because we know that data is ALREADY being abused.

Here are a few examples of misuse:

• Several companies have been caught selling detailed location data and demographic information about people who visit abortion clinics and other medical providers — including 600 Planned Parenthood locations in Massachusetts and 47 other states. (source)
  
• Bounty hunters, stalkers and debt collectors have purchased location data in order to stalk and harass victims. (source)
  
• An extremist right-wing organization bought location data to target gay Catholics, tracked a specific priest to several locations including gay bars, and publicly outed him. (source)
• Data brokers have already bought, repackaged, and sold the location data of people visiting abortion clinics and other medical providers. (source)
  
• Vice President J.D. Vance has publicly advocated for the police to track the location data of patients crossing state lines for abortion care. (source)
  

This is a serious threat to our reproductive rights, digital privacy, and personal safety.

What the Location Shield Act would do:

1. Prohibit companies from selling, leasing, trading, or renting location data. 
2. Require companies to obtain consent before collecting or processing location data.  
3. Still allow companies to collect and process location data — with user consent — for legitimate purposes, like providing requested services to consumers, responding to emergencies, and, complying with state and federal law

How you can get involved:

On Wednesday, April 9th, there will be a public hearing for the Location Shield Act (H.86 & S.197). If you want to see this bill passed you can submit testimony in support of the Location Shield Act before the hearing!

We made a form with pre-written message that takes less than a minute to fill and send. You can find it here.

More:

👉 You can learn more about the Location Shield Act through the ACLU's resources here.

👉 Want to stay up-to-date on bills like these? Feel free to join our newsletter or follow us on Instagram / BlueSky.

Like at the beginning of COVID I am wondering if anyone has seen or heard rumors of panic buying this weekend to get ahead of the crash on Monday and upcoming price hikes?