The Massachusetts state flag flies in front of the State House. (Jesse Costa/WBUR)
Massachusetts lawmakers on Wednesday took a step toward potentially replacing the official state seal and motto, a victory for activists who have argued for decades that the current versions disparage Native Americans.
A legislative resolve creating a commission to recommend a new seal and motto (S 2848) emerged in the final hours of the 2020-2021 lawmaking session, earning support from both branches and landing on Gov. Charlie Baker s desk just after 4 a.m.
The panel would be tasked with studying the state s seal and motto to ensure that they faithfully reflect and embody the historic and contemporary commitments of the commonwealth to peace, justice, liberty and equality and to spreading the opportunities and advantages of education, then recommending a new or revised version by Oct. 1.
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Ed Alger stands in the doorway of the building he moved into recently, which is operated by Father Bill s & MainSpring. The six previously homeless men living in the Brockton property will get on-site support services. (Jesse Costa/WBUR)
Providing permanent housing with support services to people who ve been chronically homeless reduces health care costs in the first year, according to a new study released Tuesday.
Expenditures by MassHealth, the Medicaid program administered by the state, were 11.2% lower for people in the first year they were housed ($13,294 per patient on average) than for the control group living in shelters and on the streets ($14,781), according to the Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts Foundation report.