Open Enrollment is Underway: Apply Now for Help Paying for Health Care!

Open Enrollment is Underway:  Apply Now for Help Paying for Health Care!

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Do you have Commonwealth Care, a health plan purchased through the Health Connector, or Temporary Coverage (Temporary MassHealth/Temporary MassHealth Limited)?   If Yes, you will need to reapply for Health Insurance coverage during Open Enrollment, which is now underway!

• If you have a Plan purchased through the Health Connector, you must reapply, pick a plan and make your first payment by nextTuesday, December 23, in order to have coverage on January 1, 2015. 
• If you have Temporary MassHealth/Temporary MassHealth Limited Coverage, you should have received a letter in the mail telling you when to repply.  But there's no need to wait; you can reapply for coverage now!
• If you currently have Commonwealth Care, your coverage ends January 31, 2015.  You must reapply, pick a plan and make your first payment no later than January 23. 

Are you uninsured?  You can also apply now for help paying for health care!

Don't wait!  Click here to find a Navigator or Certified Application Counselor who can help you apply, apply online at mahealthconnector.org, or fill out a paper application available here.

Questions about your health care eligibility?  Call MIRA at 617-350-5480 x222 or Health Care for All's HelpLine at 1-800-272-4232.

Once you have applied, let us know how it went!  We need to know where you had any problems so we can advocate for improvements.  Please take this quick anonymous survey:   In English  /  In Spanish

21st Annual Mayor’s Cup Youth Hockey Tournament Begins This Weekend

 21^st Annual Mayor’s Cup Youth Hockey Tournament Begins This Weekend

December is the month for some great Boston youth hockey action as the 2014 Mayor’s Cup Hockey Tournament kicks off this Saturday, December 20^th.

With support from Presenting Sponsor the Boston Bruins Foundation and additional support from Comcast, teams throughout Boston participate in this citywide tournament to vie for the championship title in 9 divisions for boys and girls ages 6-14 (Mites, Squirts, and Pee Wees.)  The tournament is organized by Boston Centers for Youth & Families (BCYF,) the City of Boston’s largest youth and human service agency.

“Everyone in the neighborhood should come out and support these young players and enjoy some great hockey,” said Mayor Martin J. Walsh. "I extend my gratitude to the Boston Bruins Foundation and Comcast​  for helping us to bring together over 1,000 young people for an exciting one-of-a-kind tournament."

Games begin on Saturday, December 20^th at 7 a.m. and are played all week long at local rinks throughout Boston.  Rinks hosting the tournament include the Murphy Rink in South Boston, the Devine Rink in Dorchester, the Bajko Rink in Hyde Park, the Bright Hockey Arena at Harvard University and the Rink at Matthews Arena at Northeastern University. 

The Championship Games will be held at the John "Snooks" Kelley Rink at Conte Forum at Boston College on Sunday, January 4th.

Support for the Mayor’s Cup Ice Hockey Tournament is also provided by The Department of Recreation and Conservation, FMC Ice Sports, Northeastern University, Harvard University, and Boston College.  A complete schedule of games is attached and will be online soon at www.cityofboston.gov/bcyf.

Governor Patrick Announces Over 100 Private Sector Employers Join Corporate Challenge Program with Bentley University

Governor Patrick Announces Over 100 Private Sector Employers Join Corporate Challenge Program with Bentley University

Initiative surpasses goal of enlisting 100 employers, new program is a keystone to advancing women in the workplace

Waltham – Tuesday, December 16, 2014 – Governor Deval Patrick today joined officials from Bentley University  to announce that more than 100 major employers, including some of the biggest corporate names in Massachusetts, have signed onto the Corporate Challenge program. The joint initiative offers companies the resources of Bentley University’s Center for Women and Business to assess gender diversity in their workplace, recruit women to senior positions and close any wage gap a company may discover.

“When we announced the Corporate Challenge program in October we had just 14 commitments from leading Massachusetts companies,” said Governor Patrick. “I knew we could do better. Not only have we met the goal of enlisting 100 companies by the end of the year, we have surpassed it. I want to thank all those employers who recognize that designing a workplace to help women maximize their full potential is good for business and good for our economy.”

The Corporate Challenge program is a cornerstone of the action agenda developed by the Successful Women, Successful Families Task Force, which Governor Patrick created by Executive Order No. 550 in March of this year. Chaired by the Secretary of Labor and Workforce Development Rachel Kaprielian, the Task Force was charged with addressing four challenges in creating equal opportunities for all individuals to be able to participate in both public and private sector workplaces, including eliminating the wage gap, advancing low income families, incentivizing family supportive policies and opening up leadership opportunities for women.

“We know from data and studies the task force reviewed that employing large numbers of women is good for business,” said Secretary Kaprielian.  “Companies that engage women outperform their competitors in every measure of profitability.”

CEOs from at least 92 Massachusetts-based companies and business organizations joined the original 14 commitments, among them Robert Coughlin, President of the Massachusetts Biotechnology Council.

“The fact is that all the research and anecdotal evidence shows diverse organizations and corporations are more successful and more profitable, so this Challenge should be a no-brainer for any organization,” said Robert K. Coughlin, President & CEO of MassBio, the life sciences trade association representing 650+ companies in Massachusetts and beyond. “I applaud Governor Patrick, Secretary Kaprielian and all of the initiative’s leaders for shining the spotlight on this opportunity for Massachusetts to make real, impactful gains in diversity and to continue our role as a world leader in business.”

“Most women in the workforce know that the gender inclusiveness issue is real,” said Gloria Larson, president of Bentley University. “As a nation, we have certainly made small steps in the right direction but to bring about real change, we all need to be involved from the most junior manager to the CEO. I am awed and inspired by these more than 100 Massachusetts companies that are making real changes to elevate and strengthen the role of women in their companies.”

“We are thrilled that more than 100 companies have committed to the Corporate Challenge and the number continues to climb,” said Betsy Myers, founding director of Bentley University’s Center for Women and Business. “We are proud to partner with a group of forward-thinking Massachusetts organizations who understand that workplace gender inclusion, though it takes work, is critical to the economic success of the Commonwealth and beyond. Together, we are working to make greater strides in advancing women in the workplace and are collaborating to share best practices and collective wisdom.”

“As President & CEO of the Life Sciences Center over the past six years, I see first-hand the challenges and the opportunities for women’s leadership in the life sciences,” said Susan Windham-Bannister, Ph.D., President & CEO of the Massachusetts Life Sciences Center (MLSC). "In order for our innovation economy to thrive, we need the contributions and combined brain power of talented men AND women. The Women in the Workforce Initiative is playing an important role in identifying and training the emerging women leaders of tomorrow, and the Center is pleased to be providing grant funding to Bentley College’s Center for Women and Business to support its role in this Initiative and the Corporate Challenge."

The Patrick Administration has led by example when it comes to advancing women in the workplace and understands that women are a critical force behind continuing the Commonwealth’s economic success. According to the latest Report on Diversity Outcomes in the Executive Branch released by the Office of Access and Opportunity in November 2013, 49 percent of senior managers and half of all managers within the executive branch were women. Massachusetts today ranks highest among states in the Northeast for women’s equality in employment and earnings, according to the Institute for Women’s Policy Research.

The Governor’s Advancing Women in the Workplace initiative also developed a Women’s Leadership Fellowship program. The Governor announced this fall that fourteen fellows have taken senior positions within the Patrick Administration in another effort to grow a pipeline of women poised to fill career paths to high-level occupations in both the public and private sectors.

LIST OF PARTNERS:

(as of 12/15/2014)

1.    Actifio

2.    Acquia

3.    Alexander Aronson Finning CPAs

4.    Arbella Insurance Group

5.    ARK Global LLC

6.    Associated Industries of Massachusetts (AIM)

7.    Bank of America

8.    Bentley University 9.    Biogen Idec 10.  Blue Cross Blue Shield Massachusetts 11.  Boston Benefit Partners, LLC 12.  Boston Globe

13.  Boston Medical Center Healthnet (BMC Healthnet)

14.  Boston Private Financial Holdings 15.  Boston Scientific 16.  Brookline Health Care Center 17.  Bullhorn 18.  Carbonite 19.  Care.com 20.  The Castle Group 21.  Century Bank

22.  Choate, Hall & Stewart, LLP

23.  Citizens Bank 24.  Colette Phillips Communications, Inc . 25.  Collaborative Consulting, LLC 26.  Communispace 27.  Conventures,Inc 28.  Cubist Pharmaceuticals

29.  Dalton & Finegold, LLP

30.  Dassault Systemes 31.  Deloitte LLP, Boston 32.  Denterlein Worldwide,Inc

33. Dimensions Therapeutics

34.  Eastern Bank Corporation

35.  EBS Capstone

36.  Eliassen Group

37.  Emerson Hospital

38.  EMC

39.  Enterprise Investment Advisors

40.  EOS Foundation

41.  Gentle Giant Moving Company

42.  Global Smile Foundation

43.  Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce

44.  Greater Media Boston

45.  Harvard Pilgrim Health Care

46.  Hill Holliday

47.  InkHouse 48.  Interaction Associates 49.  John Hancock Financial Services 50.  Keystone Partners 51.  KPMG LLP 52.  Kriss Law / Atlantic Closing & Escrow

53.  Krokidas & Bluestein LLP

54.  Hollister, Inc. Staffing 55.  Hotel & Home Recovery

56.  Hunter Creative Labs, LLC

57.  LAER Realty Partners 58.  Liberty Mutual 59.  Living Legacy Financial Group, Inc. 60.  Long Term Solutions 61.  Luminoso 62.  Lyve Media,LLC 63.  Marcum LLP 64.  Massachusetts Biotechnology Council 65.  Massachusetts High Technology Council 66.  Massachusetts Medical Device Industry Council 67.  Massachusetts Medical Society 68.  Mass Technology Leadership Council (Mass TLC) 69.  McGladrey LLP 70.  Middlesex Savings Bank

71.     Middlesex County Sheriff’s Office

72.  Mintz, Levin, Cohn, Ferris, Glovsky, and Popeo PC

73.  National Grid 74.  Newton Health Care Center 75.  Newton-Needham Chamber of Commerce

76.  Northeast Utilities

77.  Pearson 78.  PwC

79.  Putnam Investments

80.  Raytheon Company

81.  Riverside Partners LLC

82.  Rockland Trust

83.  Salem Five Bank

84.  Santander

85.  Seniorlink / Caregiver Homes

86.  Skanska

87.  Small Army Advertising

88.  Sodexo

89.  Staples

90.  Startup Institute

91.  State Street Corporation

92.  Suffolk County Sheriff’s Department

93.  Suffolk Design and Construction

94.  The Bulfinch Group

95.  TIAA-CREF

96.  Tufts Health Plan

97.  Unum

98.  Veracode

99.  Verizon

100. Vertex Pharmaceuticals

101. Walgreens

102. Weber Shandwick

103. William Gallagher Associates

104. Windsor Marketing Group (WMG)

105. Worcester Regional Chamber of Commerce

106. Zyno Medical

波市府獲彭博基金獎助135萬元推動創新

波士頓市府十五日透露，市長馬丁華殊（Martin Walsh）要在2030年前建造53,000間住宅單位的理想，獲得一百三十五萬元獎助金，將用於設立“住宅創新實驗室（Housing Innovation Lab）”，研究並提出如何達成理想的建議。

            該實驗室將由波士頓市長辦公室裡的“新市區機械學（New Urban Mechanics）”辦公室和鄰里發展部調員工作。

            這一為期三年的獎助金是由前紐約市長彭博的彭博慈善基金撥發。彭博曾付款給其他城市的創新隊伍，並表示幫助了紐奧良市（New Orleans）降低謀殺率，推動增長了曼菲斯（Memphis）的企業數目。

            馬丁華殊在一份聲明中表示，波士頓必須盡一切可能，確保想要幫助波士頓成為一個更好地方的人可以負擔得起住在波士頓。

            彭博慈善基金還撥款獎助了其他十三個城市的創新團隊，最近這一輪撥款，總額四千五百萬元。

Boston Receives $1.35 Million Innovation Team Grant

Award from Bloomberg Philanthropies will support creation of Housing Innovation Lab

BOSTON -- Today Mayor Martin J. Walsh announced that Boston is one of 12 U.S. cities selected to participate in the $45 million expansion of Bloomberg Philanthropies’ Innovation Teams program. The $1.35 million grant, to be awarded over three years, will initially be used to support the creation of Boston’s first Housing Innovation Lab.  The Lab will research and implement new ways for the city to partner with the innovation sector to help create the 53,000 units of housing called for in the Walsh administration's “Boston2030” housing plan.  

“We must do everything possible to ensure that everyone who wants to help make Boston a better place can afford to live here,” Mayor Walsh said.  “I want to thank Bloomberg Philanthropies for this grant, which will help us pursue bold strategies to keep families and individuals here in our city.  Potential partners surround us, from local architects to world-leading colleges and universities.  The Housing Innovation Lab will help us strengthen these partnerships and create new ones to help us solve Boston’s housing challenges.”

Innovation teams (i-teams) function as in-house innovation consultants, helping agency leaders and staff through a data-driven process to assess problems, generate responsive new interventions, develop partnerships, and deliver measurable results.  Boston's i-team will operate out of the Mayor's Office of New Urban Mechanics and the Department of Neighborhood Development, and will initially focus on establishing a consortium of government, academic, and private-sector partners with a mission of rapidly turning the region's best ideas into new homes for Bostonians.  

In keeping with the successful approach of past i-teams, the team will tackle at least one other mayoral priority during the course of the three year grant. 

Boston was one of 14 cities selected worldwide to receive this support from Bloomberg Philanthropies. Innovation team grants will also go to the U.S. cities of: Albuquerque, NM; Centennial, CO; Jersey City, NJ; Long Beach, CA; Los Angeles, CA; Mobile, AL; Minneapolis, MN; Peoria, IL; Rochester, NY; Seattle, WA; and Syracuse, NY. Bloomberg Philanthropies also announced that two non-U.S. cities will receive innovation team grants: Jerusalem and Tel Aviv-Yafo, Israel.  In addition to the grants, cities receive robust implementation support and opportunities to exchange lessons learned and best practices with peers in other cities. Newly formed i-teams will be deployed in each city no later than spring 2015.