• Congresswoman Clark planning to file bill requiring a federal/state supply chain response coordinator
  • Black and Latinx activists say state is reopening too soon
  • Gateway cities struggle connecting with students through distance learning
  • Recreational cannabis shops set to open today
  • Consumers offer slow start to Massachusetts retail reopening
  • RMV extends renewal timelines on licenses and identification cards
  • Tuesday’s Silver Lining: 10-year-old Connecticut girl sends 1,500 art kits to foster care

 

  1. Congresswoman Katherine Clark is filing an updated bill to establish a point person to oversee the medical supply chain in response to the COVID-19 epidemic. The redrafted bill comes after the initial bill filed last month went to study and after weeks of Clark pushing to make a singular point of authority for the supply chain between the federal and state governments as it pertains to medical devices, drugs, personal protective equipment and vaccines.

 

  1. Black and Latinx activists marched toward the State House to advocate for communities of color, who are disproportionately affected by COVID-19 and the state’s reopening plan.

 

  1. The lack of connectivity is a problem in urban districts, due largely to money. According to MassINC Director Ben Forman, 30,000 families with K-12 aged children living in Gateway cities across Massachusetts do not have a computer at home, including 40 percent in Lawrence and more than one-third of households in Chelsea, Fall River, Holyoke, New Bedford and Springfield.

 

  1. Pot shops are once again open for business beginning today, with curbside pick-up. Under the state’s reopening plan, recreational marijuana stores are now allowed to take online and phone orders offering curbside pickup to customers. Today also marks the opening of many businesses including pet groomers, barbershops, hairdressers and office buildings around the state are allowed to open to 25 percent capacity.

 

  1. Many Massachusetts shops and retailers welcomed customers back yesterday after most were closed for two months. But consumers seem to be voting with their feet as retail stores had a slow start.

 

  1. The Massachusetts Registry of Motor Vehicles is offering extensions to people whose licenses or IDs have expired since around the start of the crisis as well as to those whose licenses will expire throughout the summer.

 

  1. KIDS WILL SAVE US: A 10-year-old girl has sent more than 1,500 art kits to children in foster care and homeless shelters during the pandemic. Chelsea Phaire of Danbury, Connecticut started a charity in 2019 for her birthday when she asked guests to donate art supplies instead of purchasing birthday gifts. Check her out at Chelsea’s Charity.