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By ERIN-LEIGH HOFFMAN

TURNERS FALLS — To help improve health care equity and community trust, Baystate Health’s Wellness on Wheels, or WOW Bus, is making stops across western Massachusetts to provide free health screenings.

By CHRIS LARABEE

CONWAY — If you were born after May 12, 2004, you will never be able to purchase any tobacco or nicotine products in Conway.

By ERIN-LEIGH HOFFMAN

MONTAGUE — After a year of continued discussion, Montague will be the latest town to join the Pioneer Valley Mosquito Control District.

By ERIN-LEIGH HOFFMAN

GREENFIELD — Despite concerns circulating about the future of Baystate Franklin Medical Center after the passage of the so-called One Big Beautiful Bill Act that cuts roughly $1.1 trillion in health care spending, Baystate Health’s chief financial officer advises the Greenfield hospital is not at risk of closure.

By ANTHONY CAMMALLERI

GREENFIELD — Officials expressed frustration Monday over procedural delays and complications while reviewing the results of the most recent groundwater testing in the area surrounding the former Lunt Silversmiths site that “strongly confirm” the contaminants are spreading.

By CHRIS LARABEE

MONTAGUE — The Community Health Center of Franklin County is getting ready to hit the road.

By ANTHONY CAMMALLERI

GREENFIELD — Despite thorough debate over a proposed resolution to support a statewide single-payer health care system this week, the Human Rights Commission tabled the idea for now, with some expressing hesitancy to prioritize the idea over other efforts, such as supporting the city’s homeless population.

By CHRIS LARABEE

More funding for the Healthy Incentives Program (HIP) may be on the way in fiscal year 2026, as Gov. Maura Healey’s proposed budget, along with those put forward by the Senate and House of Representatives, all request more money than in FY25.

By THE REV. JASON A. BURNS

I have met people from all walks of life: wealthy, homeless, famous, not-so-famous, and most everything in between. I have had people tell me their life story while sitting at my son’s Tae Kwon Do practice and I still feel the pain of losing someone who didn’t share the more difficult parts of their life with me. The common denominator in my experiencing of people is that we all long for connection. The people who have shared their stories with me did so not because I could do anything about anything, but because they sensed that I was willing to listen, and the truth is that I was and am willing to listen.

By CHRIS LISINSKI

Tens of thousands of Bay Staters could lose subsidized health insurance through the Massachusetts Health Connector and premiums could rise for most other members under a suite of reforms in the U.S. House-approved reconciliation bill that Gov. Maura Healey dubbed “devastating.”

GREENFIELD — The region’s behavioral health and wellness resources were on display last week as part of the 23rd Mental Health & Wellness Fair at Energy Park.

By CHRIS LARABEE

GREENFIELD — In celebration of National EMS Week, several area paramedics were honored for their lifesaving work over the last year.

By ANTHONY CAMMALLERI

GREENFIELD — Amid rising health insurance rates, Human Rights Commission member Paul Jablon drafted a resolution calling for the city’s support of a bill to convert  Massachusetts to a single-payer health care system — a change that he said was expected to save the city $3 to $5 million in insurance costs. 

By ALEXANDER MACDOUGALL

NORTHAMPTON — Local gender-affirming care clinic Transhealth is condemning a recent review put out by the federal Department of Health and Human Services that recommends against the use of medical treatment for gender dysphoria in youth.

By DOMENIC POLI

ATHOL — Local health care providers have been swamped with people seeking new primary care doctors following North Quabbin Family Physicians’ closure two months ago.

By ANTHONY CAMMALLERI

After the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported earlier this month that there have been more than 600 confirmed cases of measles detected in the U.S. — including some in New York, Rhode Island and Vermont — local health professionals are urging unvaccinated Franklin County residents to get their shots.

By ERIN-LEIGH HOFFMAN

GREENFIELD — Mental health officials, school representatives and nonprofit leaders from across Franklin County recently came together to discuss youth mental health, and brainstorm ideas on future programs and collaborations to support youth mental health services.

By MAYA MITCHELL

Five years after the first case of what was then a novel coronavirus infection, health care professionals and state legislators worry Massachusetts isn’t ready if another pandemic were to happen.

By CHRIS LARABEE

GREENFIELD — Community and nonprofit leaders convened at the Franklin Regional Council of Governments’ offices this week to share an update on advocacy efforts for some of the most vulnerable populations: children and caregivers.

By DOUG SELWYN

Anguished cries coming out of school administration offices and school committee meetings signal the annual return of budget season. School district decision makers across the state desperately try to create budgets that serve the needs of all of their children. The money coming from the state and the drained treasuries of their local towns is nowhere near enough to cover the actual cost of educating the children.