Hello Westfield! Hope you all had a good week and a happy Valentine’s Day. As always, this was a busy week for our office.
On Monday, I attended the monthly meeting of the local Marine Corps League Detachment 141. They recently had a pipe freeze and burst, which left them with a costly repair bill. After hearing about the cost, the Mayor and I decided to donate to the MCL to help defray the cost for the group. In total, we presented them with $800. They really do contribute so much to the community, it was the least we could do, and a great way to start off the week!
On Tuesday, my office met with Tracey Carpenter from the Massachusetts Senior Action Council to discuss the state of health care for elderly Mass residents. One of the major concerns they are trying to address through legislation is called the “Medicaid Gap,” which describes the gap between seniors who cannot afford their Medicare premiums and those who actually receive MassHealth premium assistance. For individuals under 65, the income and asset limits are much different than for those over 65, meaning that many people lose MassHealth coverage on their 65th birthday, when they become eligible for Medicare. For seniors living on fixed incomes, the cost of their coverage can be a huge burden and severely limit their quality of life. The Senior Action Council is looking to pass a bill that would expand the Medicare premium assistance program and help to cover thousands of elders who are currently struggling to make ends meet because of their health care costs. I am very much looking forward to the debate on this topic and hope that we can work to improve the lives of those this bill would help.
We had formal session on Wednesday, during which we voted on a bill that addresses the recent Equifax hack from late last year. As most of you know, the data of millions of Americans was compromised during this attack, putting many of us at risk for identity theft. Although there are ways of keeping your credit secure, such as credit freezes and security alerts, it often costs the consumer money to fix the mistakes of the large credit bureaus. The bill passed this week provides added protections and resources for consumers in the event of a data security breach that impacts a credit agency or other business. Under this new legislation, credit freezes, lifts or removals must be provided to consumers without a charge. Credit agencies or businesses must also provide one year of free credit monitoring after any breach. Although it doesn’t undo what happened last year, it will provide much needed protection measures in the event of any future hacks.
Finally, on Friday, I attended the legislative breakfast for the Greater Springfield Convention and Visitors’ Bureau. GSCVB is the agency in charge of promoting tourism for the entire Pioneer Valley, so they are extremely important to our local economy. I sincerely enjoy their breakfast every year because it gives us a chance to catch up on the progress they have made over the last 12 months, as well as provide feedback and ask questions about their future plans. With the MGM Casino set to open so soon, this year we will be experiencing a huge boost to our local tourism sector. I believe GSCVB is ready for the challenge and I can’t wait to see how much of a difference it will make in the coming months.
That’s it for this week, folks. As always, if you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to reach out to my office at [email protected] or (413) 572-3920. Have a wonderful long weekend!
