In the News

HOLYOKE, Mass. (WWLP) – The last three months have been very hard on family members of veterans at the Holyoke Soldiers’ Home. The coronavirus killed 78 veterans, including Laurie Beuadette’s father James. “It’s agonizing knowing how my dad passed seeing him fade away on Facetime, it was awful. I took screenshots and I get nightmares looking at them,”… Read more »

A proposal to renovate and expand the Holyoke Soldiers’ Home got a major boost Saturday as First District U.S. Rep. Richard Neal, Chairmen of the U.S. House Ways and Means Committee, threw his support behind the plan. “The proposals that we are speaking about today regarding the renovation for the future of the Holyoke Soldiers’ Home are critical given the terrible… Read more »

The beacon of light touted recently by Massachusetts U.S. Rep. Richard Neal for an east-west passenger rail extension in the state is a grant program under which all states could compete for transportation project funding. Neal, who chairs the House Ways and Means Committee, said at a press conference last week that the new $1.5 trillion infrastructure package House Democrats will pursue… Read more »

Rep. Richard Neal, who chairs the House Ways and Means Committee, joined House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and other Democratic House committee chairs to present a bill that would expand coverage under the Affordable Care Act during the coronavirus pandemic. “We’re very much in the midst of this pandemic,” Neal said during a press conference yesterday. “There is no… Read more »

Lawmakers, officials and others weighed in Wednesday on findings of an independent report that said leadership at the Holyoke Soldiers' Home made "substantial errors and failures" in handling a deadly COVID-19 outbreak.  Seventy-six veterans at the state-run facility testing positive for the virus have died in recent months. John Paradis was a deputy superintendent at the… Read more »

Advocates, lawmakers and relatives of loved ones lost to the devastating coronavirus outbreak at the Holyoke Soldiers’ Home are pushing the Baker administration for major reforms and are calling for further investigations after the release of a harrowing report on the facility’s failures to sufficiently respond to the crisis. The report on the independent investigation by… Read more »

Democratic leaders in the House of Representatives on Wednesday unveiled a sweeping health care package to strengthen the benefits of the Affordable Care Act, lowering the costs of insurance premiums, expanding eligibility for premium tax credits and allowing states to create state-based health insurance marketplaces. Democrats framed the proposals as a way to protect the… Read more »

PITTSFIELD — U.S. Rep. Richard E. Neal, chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, expressed confidence in his party's efforts to invest in infrastructure and to provide pandemic relief, despite Republican aversion to large spending bills amid the economic downturn. Neal's comments followed the rollout last week of the "Moving Forward Act," an infrastructure plan by Democrats… Read more »

SPRINGFIELD — In the midst of the coronavirus pandemic and protests in defense of Black lives, Athena Gamble decided to launch her own business in Springfield offering up sweet treats during a very difficult time. Snap, Crackle & Pop is a gourmet popcorn business featuring flavor combinations like cookies and cream and pecan popcorn. “It was definitely a… Read more »

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (WWLP) – Congressman Richard Neal and Springfield Mayor Domenic Sarno met at Union Station’s Platform C, which recently underwent a $10 million federally funded improvement, the kind of improvement that the Moving Forward Act advocates on a much larger scale. Congressman Neal, the Chairman of the U.S. House Ways and Means Committee has given the Moving… Read more »