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Slots for primary-care training, including family medicine, pediatrics, and internal medicine, also increased by 877 positions this year, offering up to 20,300 positions for the nation. This seems like promising news for a city like Boston, where the wait for a new patient to access primary care is at least 40 days, twice as long as in 15 other studied cities, and up to half of the primary-care workforce is close to retiring age. The most recent primary-care dashboard from Massachusetts Health Quality Partners, a measurement and reporting nonprofit organization, shows that these shortages are driving up visits to emergency departments, spiking Massachusetts’ total cost on health care, and disproportionately affecting low-income people and people of color, further aggravating our state’s health inequities.
The small increase in slots to train future primary-care physicians nationally will not come close to fixing our primary-care crisis in Massachusetts, however. In a state that has more physicians per capita than any other in the United States, only 22 percent of Massachusetts medical school graduates were providing primary care six to eight years later, as of 2023.
Further, not all primary-care training programs are equal in terms of generating practicing primary-care physicians. According to a recent study, 97 percent of family-medicine residents conclude their training in primary care, whereas only 54 percent of pediatric residents and 35 percent of internal medicine residents conclude their training in primary care. In other words, the vast majority of new primary-care physicians in the United States are family-medicine physicians. Given the robust training of family-medicine physicians, including caring for prenatal, postpartum, pediatric, adult, and geriatric patients, this workforce is crucial.
However, while 13.4 percent of first-year residency positions were in family medicine nationally, Massachusetts only provides 3.9 percent of its first-year residency slots in family medicine. Given that studies show the vast majority (68.7 percent) of family-medicine graduates continue to work in the state where they trained after graduation, this anemic number is a poor harbinger for our future.
A significant barrier to training more family-medicine physicians is the lack of academic medical support. Apart from Boston Medical Center, there are no family-medicine departments in Boston’s academic medical centers, where the majority of graduate medical education occurs. The rationale often cited is that it is the responsibility of community-based institutions to train future primary-care and family-medicine doctors. However, it is exceedingly difficult for community-based hospitals and community health centers to take on this responsibility with already tight profit margins, a lack of internal infrastructure to support residency programs, and traditional residency program funding flowing to academic medical centers.
If Massachusetts wants to have adequate access to primary-care physicians, it needs to prioritize and organize state-level partnerships between large academic institutions and community-based institutions, particularly community health centers, to develop infrastructure and funding for new family-medicine residency programs. Academic medical centers must include investments in developing family medicine as part of their larger primary-care investment plans. Legislators must also reinstitute Medicaid Graduate Medical Education funding in Massachusetts that is targeted to support family-medicine training programs. Currently, Massachusetts is one of only seven states that does not fund residency programs through this program.
Furthermore, to attract more motivated and capable medical students to enter the field of family medicine, health care leaders, educators, and policy makers must work to make the job more sustainable. This includes actions such as statewide policies increasing reimbursements for family-medicine services from all payers, streamlining the number of health care metrics family-medicine physicians are accountable for, and reducing the administrative burden of family-medicine physicians by accelerating the use of AI to complete forms for items such as durable medical equipment, prior authorizations, and messages generated through electronic medical systems.
We are grateful to Governor Maura Healey for her recent remarks on prioritizing primary care; to the Legislature for the development of the Primary Care Task Force, which will focus on primary care access, delivery, and financial sustainability; and to the recent Massachusetts legislative hearings on Senator Cindy Friedman’s Primary Care for You bill. However, we cannot wait for the group’s recommendations to start addressing our state’s primary-care crisis. Legislators, payers, hospitals, and community health centers must work now to strengthen and grow the family-medicine workforce, build a stronger pipeline, and pay for a health care system that will build a healthier Commonwealth.
BOSTON, MA — An international restaurant group with locations across the globe is preparing to open its first Massachusetts restaurant this year.
LPM Restaurant & Bar, a French Riviera-inspired restaurant founded in London, is set to open on the second floor of the Four Seasons Hotel One Dalton Street in Back Bay, according to Four Seasons. The hotel lists the restaurant as “Opening Summer 2026,” while the Boston Business Journal reported the restaurant plans to open in September.
The Boston restaurant will mark LPM’s debut in the Northeast and its third U.S. outpost, following locations in Miami and Las Vegas, according to a Four Seasons announcement.
LPM, also known as La Petite Maison, was founded in London in 2007 and is known for French-Mediterranean food, Mediterranean ingredients and dining rooms influenced by Belle Époque design.
The business operates locations in London, Dubai, Miami, Abu Dhabi, Hong Kong, Riyadh, Limassol, Doha, Mykonos, Kuwait, Boston, Maldives and Bangkok.
Four Seasons said LPM will take over the space that formerly housed One Dalton’s breakfast concept, One + One. The restaurant will join other dining options at the hotel, including Zuma and Trifecta.
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A Massachusetts high school is under investigation after “several” teachers have been diagnosed with breast cancer or precancerous conditions.
The state Department of Public Health is set to visit Uxbridge High School on Thursday to “conduct a series of air quality tests,” to determine whether the multiple cases are potentially connected.
Superintendent David Ljungberg and Principal Michael Rubin alerted families and district staff on Monday of the “sombering news,” after Uxbridge High School’s graduation over the weekend.
“We are writing to inform you about a concern we are investigating at Uxbridge High School,” Ljungberg and Rubin stated in the letter. “Several female teachers have been diagnosed with breast cancer or precancerous conditions over the past few years.”
“It is, of course, possible that these multiple cases are not connected to one another,” the leaders added, “but out of abundance of caution, we are looking into any environmental factors at the school that may be a factor in their diagnoses.”
The 123,000-square-foot school, with an enrollment of roughly 600, was constructed in 2012 at a cost of $45 million, including a $22-million state reimbursement.
Uxbridge school leaders say they notified the state Department of Health and local health board as soon as they became aware of the cases, seeking “counsel about how best to proceed.”
“Massachusetts DPH officials have indicated that there is no evidence of immediate danger in the building and no reason to limit access to or use of the facility at this time,” they wrote in their letter. “In fact, the public health officials have commended our decision to approach them with these concerns, our readiness to partner with them in support of the evaluation process.”
Health officials are assessing the school’s interior and exterior to “ensure there are no issues with the infrastructure that would present risks (including electrical, plumbing, mechanical, HVAC, and other systems)” and the indoor and outdoor air quality on campus.
The superintendent and principal said that state officials have ruled out water supply as a “risk factor” after “thorough testing.”
“The team has reached out to the women who have been diagnosed, requesting data to evaluate whether there may be a connection among their cases,” Ljungberg and Rubin wrote. “We are grateful for their cooperation.”
They added that the state has said discovering an environmental “smoking gun” is “rare” in workplace investigations.
“However, even if a direct causal link is not established,” the leaders wrote, “the administration is utilizing this process to rigorously test the building and guarantee that it meets all safety standards moving forward.”
Local News
Massachusetts lawmakers are considering a measure that would allow cities and towns to temporarily extend bar and restaurant hours during the summer, as the state prepares to host FIFA World Cup matches and celebrations marking the nation’s 250th anniversary.
The legislation (H.5465) filed by state Rep. Carole Fiola, would allow licensed establishments to sell alcohol one hour later than their normal closing time, up to 3 a.m., between June 1 and Aug. 31, 2026. The bill would also allow communities to establish designated public consumption districts where alcohol could be consumed in approved public spaces.
In a press release announcing the bill, Fiola said the summer’s threefold events lineup — the World Cup, Tall Ships, and July 4th — is an economically significant moment that the state should take advantage of.
“We should capitalize on these events that will generate economic benefits for small businesses and the state as a whole. It’s a local opt-in idea worth exploring that’s being done in other states,” Fiola said.
The proposal has received support from Boston Mayor Michelle Wu and most recently Gov. Maura Healey, who submitted written testimony Monday to the Joint Committee on Economic Development and Emerging Technologies urging lawmakers to advance the measure.
“Massachusetts is planning for a once-in-a-generation summer,” Healey wrote, according to the Boston Globe. “In 2026, we will celebrate the 250th anniversary of our nation’s founding, welcome tall ships from around the world to Boston Harbor for Sail Boston, and host seven FIFA World Cup matches in Foxborough, along with watch parties across the Commonwealth.”
The governor argued that the added flexibility could help local economies benefit from an influx of visitors.
“That flexibility can help communities capture more visitor spending, support jobs, keep downtowns active, and strengthen Massachusetts’ image as a dynamic destination ready to host the world and a place our residents, including our young professionals, are proud to call home,” Healey wrote.
She also urged lawmakers to move the legislation forward, saying it will “help Massachusetts meet the full economic and cultural opportunities for the summer ahead.”
In Rhode Island, a similar bill to allow bars and restaurants to remain open until 4 a.m. during the World Cup was signed into law on Friday.
Fiola’s bill remains before the Joint Committee on Economic Development and Emerging Technologies. Any final version would require approval from both the House and Senate before reaching Healey’s desk.
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