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It may almost feel like summer outside today, but I’ve got snow on my mind. The Boston University men’s hockey team will play Minnesota in the Frozen Four today at 5 p.m. A win on Saturday sends the Terriers to the national championship. But first, news:
Off the mask? Gov. Maura Haley’s administration is standing by its decision to lift the state’s mask mandate for medical settings next month, despite calls from some health professionals to maintain the COVID policy indefinitely. The requirement — which applies everywhere from large hospitals to small dentist offices — is set to expire on May 11 with the state’s COVID public health emergency.
- Last week, hundreds of local medical professionals signed a letter calling the decision “dangerous and unethical.” They have asked individual healthcare organizations to keep their mask policies in place as a preventive measure against the spread of COVID.
- However, Department of Public Health officials say infection control experts and other leaders at the state’s largest hospital system have asked them to end the mask mandate. “This decision is consistent with CDC guidelines … and was made after extensive conversations with health care experts,” a state spokeswoman said, adding that most other states have already lifted their mask mandates for health care settings.
- DPH also reiterated that states can always reinstate mask mandates in such settings if the rate of Covid rebounds at some point in the future.
Other health news: Three former executives at a Massachusetts medical device company face federal charges of concealing their blood lead tests for allegedly producing faulty and inaccurate results. As WBUR’s Gabriel Emanuel reports, the allegations raise some troubling questions for many parents.
- Prosecutors say thousands of children and others received falsely low lead test results from Billerica-based Magellan Diagnostics testing, providing a false sense of security. In fact, the recalled devices were used in more than half of all lead blood tests performed in the United States between 2013 and 2017.
- Local impact: State records obtained by Emanuel show that Magellan’s devices were used in at least 97 pediatric and other health care offices in Massachusetts. However, experts say it is too late to retest many affected children. “After a few months, the lead washes out of the bloodstream,” said Philip Landrigan, a Boston College physician and lead public health expert.
- What you should know: The CDC estimates in 2021 that 500,000 children ages 1 to 5 will have dangerous levels of lead in their blood. Because the Magellan devices have already been recalled, Landrigan hopes the new charges won’t undermine public confidence in other tests: “Blood lead testing is very protective of children’s health.”
Look away, Charlie Baker. Boston is set to become the largest city in Massachusetts to opt for a new climate-friendly building code that discourages oil and gas connections in new construction and major renovations. The City Council approved the so-called “stretch code” in an 8-4 vote yesterday, and Mayor Michelle Wu plans to quickly give final approval to the measure, her office told The Boston Globe.
The city of Lowell begins A new police body camera program yesterday, equipping 30 officers with the device. The city plans to expand the pilot program to the entire 235-officer force next year.
- Lowell adds to the small but growing contingent of Massachusetts communities that have rolled out police body cameras. (Southborough also joined the club this week.)
- One hiccup: District attorneys say the statewide network that manages all body cam footage is becoming overloaded, as more police departments adopt officer-worn cameras.
PS— Join us for a drink – and a bite! The Radio Boston The group is hosting a panel discussion tonight at CitySpace about the state of Massachusetts’ beer industry and the state’s rise among the nation’s top brewers. And yes, attendees will get to sample several local beers along with some specially paired dishes.