scorecardresearch Skip to main content
Health and biotech

Latest stories

Good Samaritan Medical Center in Brockton reopens Sunday after power outage

The hospital lifted its “code black” — meaning it had been diverting ambulances to other facilities — at about 7:30 a.m., according to Deborah Chiaravalloti, a spokesperson for Steward Health Care.

Some patients relocated from Brockton’s Good Samaritan Medical Center following major power outage Saturday
City officials on Saturday encouraged people who need assistance for a non-life threatening issue to call their medical provider or use one of the area’s urgent care centers.

Waiting for a heart transplant, he finally got a life-saving call — but had no ride. A stranger stepped in to help.
When an Oxford resident in need of a heart transplant needed a ride to Boston, he got one from a person — a heart transplant survivor — he barely knew. The act of kindness transpired with help from HeartBrothers, a Marlborough-based nonprofit.

Is your dog high? Here’s how to tell, and what to do next.
Your dog ate your homework, your lunch, and your weed? Local veterinarians warn that marijuana is harmful to pets.

Kaiser Permanente health care workers’ strike heads into final day with no deal in sight
The three-day strike carried out in multiple states will officially end Saturday at 6 a.m., and workers were expected to return to their jobs in Kaiser’s hospitals and clinics that serve nearly 13 million Americans.

Former Brigham and Women’s doctor faces allegations of inappropriate pelvic and breast exams
Brigham and Women’s Hospital said it began an investigation of Dr. Derrick Todd, a rheumatologist. He left the hospital in July and has since agreed to stop practicing medicine.

Featured stories

How a Boston doctor diagnosed the first US case of monkeypox

After a few days, the doctor noticed a telling change. The patient’s rash consisted of fluid-filled blisters that had a dent in the center. His rash looked like smallpox.

Once the ‘it’ supplement, vitamin D is losing its sparkle

Vitamin D supplements, regularly consumed by millions of Americans, have not held up to the considerable hype of warding off many common, dreaded diseases.

Right-wing groups hit Boston Children’s with barrage of threats over trans health program

A hostile online campaign has prompted the hospital to seek help from law enforcement.

This startup aims to delay menopause and prolong fertility with a new contraceptive

Oviva Therapeutics just raised $11.5 million to develop drugs based on the work of Mass. General researchers.
Biotech

Gene therapy firm with operations in Lexington cuts 20 percent of workforce

Dutch company UniQure said Thursday it will cut about 20 percent of its workforce, or 114 jobs, as it joins the growing list of biotechs shedding workers.

The promise of biotech jobs is coming to Boston’s neighborhoods

Bioversity, a new training center under construction in Dorchester, last week hosted residents and job seekers at its future site.

Lexington native Drew Weissman, co-recipient of Nobel Prize for COVID vaccine research, says he first thought it was a ‘prank’

Dr. Weissman told reporters Monday that he received a “cryptic” text message from his colleague alluding to something big.
Lifestyle

Curt Schilling draws outrage after disclosing former teammate’s health information: ‘Flat out vile’

The former Red Sox pitcher publicized that Tim Wakefield and his wife are both battling cancer, a disclosure made without the couple’s permission.

Prescriptions for Ozempic and similar drugs with weight-loss effects soar past 9 million

Health-care providers wrote more than 9 million prescriptions for Ozempic and similar drugs in the final three months of 2022, according to a new analysis.
RI BUSINESS

Next competitor for R.I. hospital CEOs? Amazon, CVS, Uber Eats, and other tech.

Companies that specialize in artificial intelligence and digital tech are Lifespan’s biggest competitors to tackle, according to CEO John Fernandez.
Spotlight

How Brigham Health helped create a Chinese hospital for elites — and almost nobody came

In a deal worth millions with Chinese developer Evergrande, a Harvard teaching hospital risked its reputation on what would become a near-empty shell.

Boston’s hospital chiefs moonlight on corporate boards at rates far beyond the national level

Hospital chiefs and trustees defend this as boosting public-private partnerships, but critics say these board positions — some paying millions of dollars — raise troubling issues of conflict of interest and hospital priorities.

More biotech and health care stories

State launches new respiratory illness dashboard to track COVID-19, flu, and RSV

The Massachusetts Department of Public Health announced several trend-tracking dashboards to monitor cases of COVID, the flu, and RSV in the state.

A Brockton hospital recently treated four people for tuberculosis; city has about 10 active cases, officials say

Good Samaritan Medical Center in Brockton has recently treated four people for tuberculosis, and there are about 10 active cases of the disease among city residents, officials said Thursday.

Gun deaths rising sharply among children, Mass. researchers find

According to an analysis published Thursday, the rate of firearm fatalities among children younger than 18 increased by 87% from 2011-21 in the United States.

Gene therapy firm with operations in Lexington cuts 20 percent of workforce

Dutch company UniQure said Thursday it will cut about 20 percent of its workforce, or 114 jobs, as it joins the growing list of biotechs shedding workers.

Sanofi to pay Teva as much as $1.5 billion for bowel drug

Teva will get an upfront payment of $490 million and the rest as the medicine passes certain milestones, the companies said in a statement Wednesday.

‘It is going to be more challenging this year.’ CDC director addresses vaccination hiccups on visit to Boston

CDC Director Mandy Cohen kicked off a fall vaccination campaign in Roxbury Wednesday.

J&J gets $223 million N.J. talc verdict tossed by appeals court

The ruling comes as J&J is gearing up to face a spate of jury trials early next year over allegations its executives knew since the early 1970s their talc contained trace amounts of asbestos, but failed to alert consumers or regulators.

Roche Bros. agrees to pay $40,000, change security policies at downtown Boston store following racial profiling complaints

The Roche Bros. supermarket chain has agreed to pay the penalty and make changes to its security protocols at its store in Downtown Crossing, legal filings show.