Stories
Vermont is about to embark on a new effort to address racial and other disparities in the health care system. Over the last two years, the life expectancy of Black men in the United States has dropped by three years. According to the Centers for Disease Control, the racial gap in life expectancy is now wider than…
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For Valyria Lewis, the music didn’t go away when she wasn’t able to perform in public during the pandemic. She’s always sat at her piano to sing, practice and play. “Being on stage is great and having the light and the energy from the audience is awesome,” said Lewis, who goes by Miss Vee when…
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Mientras bajan las tasas de vacunación, los funcionarios del departamento de salud y servicios comunitarios de Nashua se esfuerzan por llegar a más personas de la comunidad y ahora reparten las dosis en concesionarios de automóviles, iglesias y diversos negocios. Durante el pasado fin de semana, La Fama 2, una barbería en Nashua, fue una…
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None of the 1,200 or so people held by the Vermont Department of Corrections died from COVID-19, making it the only state in the country with no coronavirus fatalities among its incarcerated population. But while protocols like regular testing and lockdowns might have helped Vermont prisons avoid the worst of the pandemic, the strict lockdown…
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In the back of La Fama 2 Barbershop in Nashua, a group of men gather around black pleather couches, examining the vials and needles used to distribute the COVID-19 vaccine laid out on the coffee table. They tease each other about who’s brave enough to get the shot first. “Do you want me to hold…
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Although Massachusetts has one of the highest COVID-19 vaccination rates in the country, Hampden County has the lowest rate in the state — with major racial and ethnic disparities among who is getting the shot. Local health departments are focused on making the vaccine as visible and convenient as possible for hard-to-reach populations, but that’s…
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Before COVID, one of Michael Besson’s biggest challenges in Boston Latin School was class change. “My bag is pretty heavy and it took a lot of work to move around,” he explained. “Plus, hallways were crowded. I use a cane and that slows me down even more.” Michael is legally blind. “I can see, but…
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Cities around New England have declared racism a public health crisis. Scholar-activist Katharine “Kat” Morris is especially interested in the intersection between racism, health and environmental justice — something she talked about in her 2019 TEDxUConn talk . Morris noted that a fifth of Connecticut’s pollution is concentrated in five cities where the majority of…
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