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THE SAUGUS ADVOCATE – FriDAy, MAy 10, 2024 Page 19 BEACON HILL ROLL | FROM PAGE 18 million in one-time funding for the maintenance and repair of local roads and bridges in cities and towns across the state. The $375 million package, a bond bill under which the funding would be borrowed by the state through the sale of bonds, also includes $175 million for several transportation-related grant programs. The programs funded by the $175 million include the municipal small bridge program; the complete streets program; a bus transit infrastructure program; and grants for municipalities to purchase electric vehicles and the infrastructure needed to support them. “We know that residents’ quality of life and our state’s economic strength depends on people being able to get where they need to go safely and on time,” said Gov. Healey. “These Chapter 90 funds and millions more for six grant programs will help us deliver on critical road, bridge and infrastructure projects that communities and the traveling public need.” “As a former mayor, I know how much this money means to our cities and towns,” said Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll. “In particular, Chapter 90 apportionments go a long way in making sure our transportation system is safe and reliable for people who live, work and visit our communities.” HOME OIL LEAKS (S 2737) – The House gave initial approval to a bill that would mandate that insurance companies in the Bay State automatically provide residential owners with insurance for damage to home and property caused by a leak in a residential liquid fuel tank or home fuel supply lines. Each policy would provide this coverage and homeowners can either keep the coverage or opt out. Current law requires that companies make coverage available for owners but supporters say that while coverage is available, there are many documented cases of companies not making owners aware that the coverage is available. They said this often results in homeowners being unaware they do not have insurance coverage until after they experience a liquid fuel tank leak. Supporters said that some 100 homeowners experience an oil leak in Massachusetts every year. They noted that leaks can incur costly damage to the residence itself, but under Massachusetts law owners are responsible for environmental cleanup, which can rise to $100,000 or more, to dispose of contaminated soil and mitigate the spread in surrounding areas. “A constituent who had a leaking oil tank, unaware of available leak insurance, had to deplete their savings for a leaking basement oil tank cleanup,” said sponsor Rep. Steve Howitt (R-Seekonk). Howitt explained that the opt out option, as opposed to the current opt in option, would protect more consumers.” The Senate has already approved a diff erent version of the bill. DRIVING WITH AN EXPIRED LICENSE (H 3376) – The House gave initial approval to a bill making driving with an expired license a civil infraction. Current law classifi es it as criminal and carries with it a fi ne up to $500. The bill would reduce the fi ne to $50 if the license has been expired for less than 90 days and $100 if the license is expired for 90 days or more. The legislation distinguishes an expired license from a revoked license or a driver who never possessed a license. “This legislation makes sense because sometimes people merely forget to renew their license,” said sponsor Rep. Chris Markey (D-Dartmouth). “People should not be arrested for being forgetful as opposed to someone who is knowingly endangering others on the road.” QUOTABLE QUOTES “This new program is paramount for nurturing a thriving creative ecosystem across the commonwealth. This funding is a catalyst for innovation, offering the recipients the freedom to explore new ideas, take risks, and push the boundaries of their craft.” ---Michael Bobbitt, Executive Director of Mass Cultural Council, announcing $1.9 million in $5,000 grants to 385 Massachusetts artists, culture bearers and creative practitioners from the fiscal year 2024 Grants for Creative Individuals. “These predatory for-profit schools harmed vulnerable students for their own fi nancial gain, leaving student borrowers burdened with debt and without viable job or fi - nancial prospects. Thanks in part to the diligent work of my offi ce, I, alongside the Department of Education, am tremendously proud to announce meaningful debt relief for former students of The Art Institutes and help advance consumer and economic justice for these struggling borrowers.” ---Attorney General Andrea Campbell announcing $80 million in federal student loan debt will be discharged for over 3,500 former Massachusetts borrowers who attended the Art Institutes, including the New England Institute of Art, a Brookline-based predatory for-profit school that made false promises and misleading enrollment claims. “It is welcome news for small businesses and residents alike that Gov. Healey is not pursuing any tax increases for the foreseeable future. The more money we keep in the pockets of employers and consumers the better as the eff ects of prolonged infl ation persist.” ---Christopher Carlozzi, State Director for the Nation Federation of Independent Business in Massachusetts. “Massachusetts consumers, restaurants and bars can all toast to the fact that cocktails to-go are here to stay. During the pandemic, cocktails to-go were a critical source of revenue for many businesses, and now, the increased convenience and stability they off er is permanent.” --- Andy Deloney, senior vice president at the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States on Gov. Healey signing a supplemental budget that keeps in place some pandemic-era programs, set to expire, including allowing restaurants to sell beer, wine and cocktails for take-out. HOW LONG WAS LAST WEEK’S SESSION? Beacon Hill Roll Call tracks the length of time that the House and Senate were in session each week. Many legislators say that legislative sessions are only one aspect of the Legislature’s job and that a lot of important work is done outside of the House and Senate chambers. They note that their jobs also involve committee work, research, constituent work and other matters that are important to their districts. Critics say that the Legislature does not meet regularly or long enough to debate and vote in public view on the thousands of pieces of legislation that have been fi led. They note that the infrequency and brief length of sessions are misguided and lead to irresponsible late-night sessions and a mad rush to act on dozens of bills in the days immediately preceding the end of an annual session. During the week of April 29May 3, the House met for a total of 24 minutes and the Senate met for a total of 17 minutes. Mon. April 29 House11:01 a.m. to 11:12 a.m. Senate 11:08 a.m. to 11:12 a.m. Tues.April 30 No House session No Senate session Wed. May 1No House session No Senate session Thurs. May 2House11:03 a.m. to11:16 a.m. Sa a Senate 11:08 a.m. to11:21 a.m. Fri. May 3No House session No Senate session Bob Katzen welcomes feedback at bob@beaconhillrollcall.com Bob founded Beacon Hill Roll Call in 1975 and was inducted into the New England Newspaper and Press Association (NENPA) Hall of Fame in 2019. Sa n o r y Senior Seni by Jim Miller How to Find a Good Doctor Dear Savvy Senior, Can you recommend some good resources to help me locate some quality doctors in my area? I’m looking for an orthopedic doctor for my 77-yearold mother and a new internist for me, since my doctor retired last year. Searching Susan Dear Susan, Finding and researching doctors is a lot easier than it used to be. Today, there are variety of websites you can turn to that provide databases of U.S. doctors, their professional medical histories, and ratings and reviews from past patients on a number of criteria. Here are some good sites to help you get started, along with a few additional tips that can help you fi nd the right doctors. Searching Tips To help you locate some good doctors in your area, a good fi rst step is to get referrals from trusted friends, along with any doctors, nurses or other healthcare professionals you know. You also need to check your insurance provider. Call your insurer for a list of approved doctors or ask whether the doctor you’re considering is in-network. If your mother is enrolled in original Medicare, you can use the care compare tool at Medicare.gov/care-compare – click on “Doctors & Clinicians.” This will let you fi nd doctors by name, medical specialty or by geographic location that accept original Medicare. If she’s enrolled in a Medicare Advantage plan, call or visit the plan website to get a list of approved candidates. Once you fi nd a few doctors, you need to call their offi ce to verify that they still accept your insurance, and if they are accepting new patients. You should also consider hospital affi liation. Your choice of doctor can determine which hospital you go to, if needed, so fi nd out where the doctor has admitting privileges. Then use some hospital ratings services like Medicare.gov/care-compare (click on “Hospitals”) to see how it compares with other hospitals in the area. Researching Doctors After you find a few doctors you’re interested in, there are various websites you can consult, to help you evaluate them. For example, the Federation of State Medical Boards offers a tool at DocInfo.org that will let you fi nd out doctor’s board certifi cations, education, states with active licenses, and whether or not a physician has been disciplined by a state medical board. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS Data) is also a good source for researching doctors. For example, it will help you fi nd out how many times a doctor did a particular procedure and what they charge for it – go to Data.CMS. gov/tools and click on “Medicare Physician & Other Practitioner Look-up Tool.” And to learn about the fi nancial relationship that doctors have with drug and medical device companies, visit OpenPaymentsData.CMS.gov. Some other good sites for fi nding and researching healthcare professionals include Healthgrades (healthgrades. com) and Vitals (vitals.com). Both sites provide substantial doctor’s information on education and training, hospital affi liations, board certifi cation, awards and recognitions, professional misconduct, disciplinary action, offi ce locations and accepted insurance plans. They also off er 5-star ratings scales from past patients on issues such as communication and listening skills, wait time, time spent with the patient, offi ce friendliness and more. But be aware that while physician rating websites can be helpful, they can also be misleading and unreliable. Send your senior questions to: Savvy Senior, P.O. Box 5443, Norman, OK 73070, or visit SavvySenior.org. Jim Miller is a contributor to the NBC Today show and author of “The Savvy Senior” book. nior ior

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