West Nile Virus Carried by Mosquitoes Causes Deaths in at Least 6 States Across the U S newsweek.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from newsweek.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
The Vax Express Keeps Rolling But Vaccine Inequity Remains
Julie Santana boarded the Massachusetts Vaccine Express about to get his COVID-19 vaccine shot.
Aaron Schachter / GBH
At Union Station in Worcester Thursday, the mood was jubilant, the tunes from a local DJ were hits of the ’80s and ’90s and Massachusetts’ lieutenant governor couldn’t have been more excited about what the state s “Vax Express” is trying to do: get needles in the arms of people who might otherwise not get a vaccine.
“We need to go to places where there has been hesitancy and reach people where they are, which is where we are, on the commuter rail literally going to the gateway communities to bring the vaccine,” said Lt. Governor Karyn Polito. “We have pop-up clinics. We’ll literally go to your home.”
A key player in Massachusetts response to the coronavirus pandemic announced Thursday that she is stepping down.
Dr. Monica Bharel, commissioner of the Department of Public Health, is resigning effective June 18, according to a statement from the Executive Office of Health and Human Services.
“After serving in this role for more than six years, which is longer than any Public Health Commissioner has served in nearly a quarter of a century, it is the right time to begin a new chapter, Bharel said in the statement.
In a note to staff that WBUR obtained, Bharel indicated she plans on working in health policy, with a focus on equity, but did not provide specifics.
As Massachusetts maintains its spot near the top of national rankings for percentage of population vaccinated, critics who were at Governor Baker’s throat earlier this year have changed their tune or quieted altogether.