Massachusetts
Massachusetts Ballot Question 2, explained
What’s Query 2 on the overall election poll?
Query 2 as will probably be written on the poll is, “Do you approve of a regulation summarized under, on which no vote was taken by the Senate or the Home of Representatives on or earlier than Could 3, 2022?”
The query is a few proposed regulation that may create laws for dental insurance coverage. Particularly, the regulation would direct the Commissioner of the Massachusetts Division of Insurance coverage to approve or disapprove the charges of dental profit plans, and it will additionally require corporations to spend a minimum of 83% of premiums on members’ dental bills and high quality enhancements as an alternative of administrative bills. This is named a medical loss ratio. If insurance coverage corporations don’t meet the minimal customary of 83%, they must problem rebates to enrollees.
At present, there isn’t any minimal for a way a lot of premiums dental insurance coverage corporations should spend on affected person care. Compared, medical insurance coverage is regulated in america.
In Massachusetts, the medical loss ratio for small or particular person medical health insurance plans is about at 88%, and 85% for giant group plans. If the regulation is handed, Massachusetts would develop into the primary state to control dental insurance coverage charges.
What does a “sure” vote imply?
A “sure” vote would regulate dental insurance coverage charges.
What does a “no” vote imply?
A “no” vote would maintain issues as they’re and never regulate dental insurance coverage charges.
What are supporters saying?
Supporters imagine there’s presently a scarcity of transparency on how affected person {dollars} are spent and imposing laws would convey higher care and safety to customers by forcing insurance coverage corporations to direct more cash again to affected person care.
“Affected person {dollars} needs to be spent on affected person care and never insurance coverage firm income and administrative prices,” stated Dr. Michael Cooper, a Worcester-based dentist who helps voting “sure.” “Dental sufferers deserve the identical shopper protections that exist for medical insurance coverage.”
Supporters additionally notice {that a} part of the proposed regulation prevents will increase over the patron worth index with out state approval.
“This regulation is definitely going to stop premium will increase as a result of they’d now should be authorized by the division of insurance coverage,” Cooper stated.
What are opponents saying?
Opponents imagine imposing laws on dental insurance coverage will increase the price of premiums for customers, lower selection for customers, and finally make little distinction within the high quality of affected person care.
Opponents cite a research from Milliman Analysis, which confirmed a potential 38% improve in premium prices if laws are launched. Nevertheless, the Milliman Analysis research was funded by dental insurance coverage corporations and has not been peer reviewed.
“There’s a motive why no different state within the nation nor the federal authorities has set necessary loss ratio necessities for dental plans,” Kyle Sullivan, a spokesman for the Committee to Shield Entry to High quality Dental Care, stated in an e mail.
“It’s as a result of dental protection is completely different from medical insurance coverage in numerous key methods. Dental plan premiums are on common simply 5% of medical premiums and dental premiums have really decreased in actual phrases when inflation is taken under consideration.”
How did we get right here?
Query 2 was dropped at the poll by means of petition by a gaggle of Massachusetts dentists. After the proposed measure acquired sufficient signatures, the poll query was authorized by Secretary of the Commonwealth Invoice Galvin to be added for the upcoming common election poll.
Massachusetts
California man charged with threatening to ‘shoot up’ Massachusetts businesses in explicit voicemails
A California man is charged with threatening to shoot up Massachusetts companies over five extremely explicit phone calls.
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Massachusetts
Treasure mystery: Who found the gold statue in Mass. woods — and who gets the bounty?
We now know the identity of the clever treasure hunter who tracked down a gold statue worth more than $25,000 — though whether he gets to keep tens of thousands more in bounty money apparently remains up in the air.
Dan Leonard, a meteorologist in Andover, Massachusetts, was identified as the winner, not by the founders of Project Skydrop, but by NBC affiliate News Center Maine, which actually introduced Leonard and the people whose puzzle he solved in the woods of Wendell State Forest.
Leonard described the moment to founders Jason Rohrer and Tom Bailey like this: “I’m kind of in disbelief that this is happening. I see the camera so expertly hidden in that stump, and I think, ‘Oh my god.’”
The digital treasure hunt for the gold statue whose value was appraised at $26,536.25 sparked widespread speculation from puzzle enthusiasts and more. The founders created clues to make the search hard, but not too hard, specifying an area where the 10-ounce, 24-karat gold statue could be that shrank every day. People could also pay $20 to receive a daily clue, which helped fund the bounty.
People are searching for a golden statue worth more than $25,000.
The circle was centered roughly on Greenfield, Massachusetts, north along the Connecticut River from Springfield.
The person who tracked the statue down was seen on cameras grabbing the puzzle off the floor, but the Skydrop organizers didn’t hear from him until News Center Maine reached out. Leonard explained that he narrowed down where the treasure could be based on the temperature recorded in the camera, plus the cloud cover and plant life seen in the stream.
When they did meet, Leonard learned there was a catch to claiming the bounty, as News Center Maine reported: the prize could only be accessed by solving clues written onto the trophy itself, which technically meant that anyone with access to the statue could crack the code and claim the money.
Leonard was surprised, but not particularly bothered, saying, “Let’s say I don’t get it: I still had a really good time and got a treasure out of it.”
Rohrer shared more about the circumstances around Leonard’s victory in a message to the game’s official Discord server, a social media chat site where players were able to get more information about what happened.
The winner’s name is Dan Leonard. A news channel up in Maine figured out who he was, based on their meteorologist connections. They connected us with him, and we got to talk to him on camera yesterday. That encounter should appear on the news soon.
Dan joined Project Skydrop for $20 on October 25. He explained how he solved it. Along with weather patterns, temperature data, and cloud cover stuff from the trail cameras, he also depended heavily on the aerial image clues. He said it would have been impossible to solve if:
- He had no aerial clues
or - We had cropped the temperature sensor data off the camera images.
The aerial clues helped him in two ways. First, they showed him that the treasure was in a large, deciduous beech grove, and there aren’t many large beech groves in the Erving area. Second, they showed him a “map” of what the scene looked like around the treasure (the logs, etc.)
He never had an exact GPS coordinate figured out. He was simply walking the (few) large beech groves in Wendell, looking for the distinctive logs that he saw in the clues.
The temperature sensor data and weather patterns just helped him narrow down the area.
Also, he actually stared right at the treasure and didn’t see it. He walked away, thinking he had found the wrong logs. He was about to leave (he walked off-camera for 1 min and 30 seconds), and then he came back to take one more look, because those logs looked like such a close match. Then, staring at the leaves in the spot he had already checked, he suddenly saw that the treasure was there after all. He said it was almost impossible to see.
Massachusetts
Why Massachusetts loves Nibi the beaver and is fighting to keep her out of the wild
There comes a time in every young beaver’s life when they decide to branch out and leave their parents’ lodge to build their own home.
For Nibi, Massachusetts “diva” beaver, it’s a bit more complicated than that. And in the end, the governor of Massachusetts had to get involved.
Nibi was just a baby when she was abandoned and discovered on the side of the road about a few years ago. She was saved and cared for by Newhouse Wildlife Rescue in Chelmsford, northwest of Boston. That’s how the public was introduced to and fell in love with the beaver, known for its round furry frame, tiny paws and mischievous smile.
Rescuers have referred to Nibi as a “diva” because of her confidence and how she has misbehaved in the past when she did not get things her way.
Nibi, now 2 years old, is roughly the age when wild beavers embark on their journey to find a mate and build a home. Over this past summer, the Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife (MassWildlife), a state division, said it was time for Nibi to do the same, according to court documents.
But Nibi’s rescuers disagreed — arguing that the beaver was far from ready to live on her own without human intervention, and warned that her chance of survival would be low in the wild, court documents read.
Newhouse Wildlife Rescue cited beaver ecology expert Glynnis Hood, who speculated that if Nibi is released in October, she would be ill-prepared for the winter and likely experience starvation and hypothermia.
The disagreement ultimately went through state courts. It also amassed 29,000 signatures on an online petition advocating for Nibi to remain at the rescue center.
On Thursday, Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey entered the debate, announcing that she sided with Newhouse Wildlife Rescue and would issue a permit for Nibi’s stay as an education beaver.
“Nibi has captured the hearts of many of our residents, mine included,” Healey said in a statement. “I’m happy to report that we have issued a permit for Nibi to remain at a wildlife rescue as an educational beaver and inspire folks to protect our natural world.”
Newhouse Wildlife Rescue applauded the governor’s decision and thanked the overwhelming support from Nibi fans.
“This was not about making a wild animal a pet. That’s so far from what happened here and was never the goal,” the group wrote on Facebook. “This was about speaking for a creature who could not speak for herself. This was about righting a wrong.”
MassWildlife told the Associated Press that the state division is “committed to protecting the well-being of all wildlife, including Nibi the beaver,” adding that agency officials plan to “work with Newhouse Wildlife Rescue on the best steps forward.”
Beavers are common and plentiful throughout Massachusetts. They play a vital role in the state’s ecosystems by damming rivers and streams and forming shallow ponds.
In court documents, Newhouse Wildlife Rescue said they tried several times to introduce Nibi into the wild, but given that she was so young when she was found, she appeared to have no instincts on how to hunt for food on her own. “She also refused to integrate with other beavers on more than occasion,” court documents read.
The group said they plan to continue training Nibi so she could eventually be released into the wild.
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