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Massachusetts bill aims to make child care more accessible and affordable

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Massachusetts bill aims to make child care more accessible and affordable


BOSTON (AP) — Top Democrats in the Massachusetts Senate unveiled legislation Thursday they said would help make early education and child care more accessible and affordable at a time when the cost of care has posed a financial hurdle for families statewide.

The bill would make permanent grants that currently provide monthly payments directly to early education and child care providers.

Those grants — which help support more than 90% of early education and child care programs in the state — were credited with helping many programs keep their doors open during the pandemic, reducing tuition costs, increasing compensation for early educators, and expanding the number of child care slots statewide, supporters of the bill said.

The proposal would also expand eligibility for child care subsidies to families making up to 85% of the state median income — $124,000 for a family of four. It would eliminate cost-sharing fees for families below the federal poverty line and cap fees for all other families receiving subsidies at 7% of their income.

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Under the plan, the subsidy program for families making up to 125% of the state median income — $182,000 for a family of four — would be expanded when future funds become available.

Democratic Senate President Karen Spilka said the bill is another step in making good on the chamber’s pledge to provide “high-quality educational opportunities to our children from birth through adulthood, as well as our obligation to make Massachusetts affordable and equitable for our residents and competitive for employers.”

The bill would create a matching grant pilot program designed to provide incentives for employers to invest in new early education slots with priority given to projects targeted at families with lower incomes and those who are located in so-called child care deserts.

The bill would also require the cost-sharing fee scale for families participating in the child care subsidy program to be updated every five years, establish a pilot program to support smaller early education and care programs, and increase the maximum number of children that can be served by large family child care programs, similar to programs in New York, California, Illinois, and Maryland.

Deb Fastino, director of the Common Start Coalition, a coalition of providers, parents, early educators and advocates, welcomed the legislation, calling it “an important step towards fulfilling our vision of affordable child care options for families” while also boosting pay and benefits for early educators and creating a permanent, stable source of funding for providers.

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The Senate plans to debate the bill next week.





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Massachusetts

Massachusetts man charged with threatening girlfriend of FBI Director Patel

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Massachusetts man charged with threatening girlfriend of FBI Director Patel


A Massachusetts man was arrested last week after authorities said he sent FBI Director Kash Patel’s girlfriend an email ​saying he would be “happy” when her face is “canoed by an assault ‌rifle,” court records unsealed on Thursday showed.



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20 new charges brought against former Massachusetts doctor accused of rape

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20 new charges brought against former Massachusetts doctor accused of rape


A former Brigham and Women’s Doctor who was charged with raping two patients last year has been indicted on new charges. Derrick Todd, 52, from Wayland, Massachusetts, was indicted by a grand jury on three charges of rape and 17 counts of indecent assault and battery. He is expected to be arraigned on Wednesday, March 25.

“The allegations outlined in those indictments reflect just an extraordinary exploitation of a patient’s vulnerability and abuse of a position of trust,” Middlesex County District Attorney Marian Ryan told reporters.

The new charges stem from allegations by 11 women from the ages of 20 to 60 years old, Ryan said. The crimes allegedly occurred between 2022 and 2023 while Todd was a practicing rheumatologist and primary care physician at Charles River Medical Associates, a private practice in Framingham.

“Allegations include him making inappropriate sexual comments during exams, conducting exams that were excessively painful, and conducting examinations that lasted an unusual and unnecessary amount of time,” Ryan said.

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Todd first faced criminal charges last year when he was indicted on charges of raping a 39-year-old woman and 26-year-old woman, both patients at Charles River.

Dozens more women accuse Todd of abuse, some during his time at Brigham and Women’s Faulkner Hospital in Boston, with more than 270 plaintiffs in a class action lawsuit against him.

“He was a master manipulator. And his ability to groom patients, giving them access, seeing them early hours, late in the evening, texting with them by cellphone privately,” said attorney William Thompson who is representing his accusers.

Faulker Hospital conducted its own investigation and fired Todd. He also relinquished his license to practice.

DA Ryan said her office has completed its investigation but that still leaves room for others to come forward and for other counties to bring charges.

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“It’s a journey. It’s day by day, and everyone is a survivor, and everyone is healing in their own way,” Thompson said.



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Massachusetts cop shoots and kills person who was armed with a knife: Norfolk DA

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Massachusetts cop shoots and kills person who was armed with a knife: Norfolk DA


A local police officer fatally shot a person who was armed with a knife and “appeared to be in distress” Wednesday afternoon, according to the Norfolk DA’s office.

The officer-involved shooting happened in Weymouth at around 4 p.m. after police responded to a 911 call for service at the Webb Memorial State Park off River Street.

“Police arrived to that location and encountered an individual with a knife who appeared to be in distress,” the Norfolk DA’s office wrote.

“The Officer immediately administered first aid to the victim prior to transporting him to an area hospital in critical condition,” the office added.

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The male who was critically injured was later pronounced dead at the hospital.



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