In the News

HOLYOKE, Mass. (WWLP) – The Holyoke community is mourning after 13 deaths were reported at the Soldiers’ Home Tuesday. Local veterans are also mourning the loss of these vets. “It’s a terrible thing, I mean I talked to veterans this morning and they are depressed. It’s like how can you let that happen?” asked Paul Mina of Springfield, son of a WWII… Read more »

HOLYOKE, MA (WGGB/WHSM) -- Government officials want answers and an investigation into what happened to veterans at the Soldiers’ Home who tested positive for COVID-19. Some even died from it. As of Tuesday, 13 residents in the soldiers home have died, according to the Massachusetts Health and Human Services. Six of them tested positive for the coronavirus. Five results are… Read more »

Pittsfield — Berkshire Health Systems does not have enough testing kits for COVID-19 and has been limiting tests only to exposed staff and those in the community who exhibit specific symptoms for the virus. In addition, BHS hospitals need more ventilators, a BHS doctor said Tuesday. “We don’t have as many test kits that we’d like to have,” Dr. James Lederer,… Read more »

HOLYOKE — U.S. Rep. Richard Neal on Tuesday called for accountability after revelations about a dozen deaths at the Soldiers’ Home in Holyoke, with several linked to the coronavirus pandemic. During a telephone town hall, meanwhile, Neal reassured a woman whose husband lives in the state-run facility that public officials are working to understand what happened there and what… Read more »

U.S. Rep. Richard Neal is pushing for COVID-19 relief package checks to be issued to seniors and vulnerable groups automatically without needing to file any additional information with the federal government. In a statement Tuesday, Neal said he and other lawmakers had “been inundated with calls from concerned senior citizens regarding their ability to receive” checks… Read more »

The $2.2 trillion federal stimulus and stability package partially authored by U.S. Rep. Richard E. Neal includes more than $375 billion in small business relief. That includes $349 billion for forgivable loans to small businesses to pay their employees and keep them on the payroll; $17 billion for debt relief for current and new SBA borrowers; and $10 billion in immediate disaster… Read more »

(CNN) When President Donald Trump tweeted Tuesday that he could support a $2 trillion infrastructure package to jumpstart the economy, it was welcome news for House Ways and Means Chairman Richard Neal, a Massachusetts Democrat who has been waiting for months to craft such an effort. Lawmakers may be away from Capitol Hill, but negotiations have already quietly begun on what could become… Read more »

As the new coronavirus outbreak grows across Massachusetts, Berkshire subscribers of Spectrum cable now have access to the latest news from across the state.As of Tuesday, WWLP-TV, the Springfield-based NBC affiliate, is available on Channel 14 in the Berkshires (Channel 16 in Lee), according to a statement released by the offices of Sens. Edward Markey and Elizabeth Warren, and U.S. Rep.… Read more »

People across the Berkshires, 5,300 strong, came together Tuesday seeking answers in the age of the new coronavirus. Without ever meeting. U.S. Rep. Richard E. Neal, D-Springfield, took called-in questions during a "virtual town hall," joined by Dr. James Lederer of Berkshire Health Systems. The hour revealed what's on the minds of the dozen people chosen to ask questions amid a public… Read more »

CHICOPEE, Mass. (WWLP)– Congressman Richard Neal held a telephone town hall meeting on Tuesday afternoon to address the concerns of constituents about the COVID-19 crisis. He was joined by Dr. James Lederer, Chief Medical and Chief Quality Officer of Berkshire Health System (BHS), who provided information on what is being done in Berkshire County to combat COVID-19. Both Neal and… Read more »