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Protecting Access to Food
Hunger is on the rise in Massachusetts. Since July 2025, 64,000 Massachusetts children have lost access to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) after federal changes to the program’s application and reporting processes. These changes, coupled with low staffing at the Department of Transitional Assistance (DTA)—the state agency that administers SNAP— mean families can’t reach staff to complete the new enrollment and recertification requirements. In each month of 2026, at least 75% of calls trying to reach a DTA caseworker were disconnected due to high call volumes, leaving families at risk of losing benefits simply because they couldn’t get through. Without immediate action, these barriers to enrollment and retention will continue to put more children and families at risk of immediate and long-term health outcomes.
Join us in taking action:
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End of Session Wrap-Up: A Big Win and Unfinished Business
The State Legislature wrapped up its 2025-2026 formal session at the end of July, delivering a major victory for the people of Massachusetts while leaving other public health priorities unfinished.
Lawmakers passed the PROTECT Act, and Governor Healey signed it into law. This landmark legislation limits state and local collaboration with federal immigration authorities and protects immigrants and all residents from aggressive federal immigration enforcement actions.
But the session also ended without resolving several of MPHA’s other priority bills pending in the legislature, including rent stabilization, the environmental bond bill, and the data privacy act, among others. Your advocacy this session pushed each of these bills closer to the finish line. Under the joint rules established two years ago, the Legislature can still act on legislation after July 31, as long as conference committees are in place before the deadline. Please stay tuned for opportunities to keep the pressure on!
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MA DPH Invites YOU to Help Shape the Future of Public Health
The Community Health Equity Survey gathers information about the experiences, needs, and priorities of Massachusetts residents aged 12 and older, with a focus on communities disproportionately impacted by structural racism and other drivers of health inequity. Driven by community members’ experiences, survey data helps local organizations advocate for equitable policies, apply for funding to meet local needs, and tailor programs to best serve their communities. At the state level, survey data helps to quantify health and social needs unique to different communities, identify opportunities to address inequities, and prioritize how resources are allocated.
Here’s what you need to know:
- The survey takes 15 to 30 minutes to complete and is available in multiple languages. It will remain open through November 2026.
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To help promote the survey, check out the DPH’s toolkit.
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Take the survey at mass.gov/HealthSurvey.
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Public Health Under Assault by Today’s Politics
Public health has always been part of the American tradition, not an ideological project. In a recent MassLive op-ed, MPHA Executive Director Carlene Pavlos and Board President Roeshana Moore-Evans trace that history, from Onesimus, an enslaved man whose knowledge helped save lives during Boston's 1721 smallpox epidemic, to today’s attacks by the current federal administration. History is clear about what happens when politics overrides evidence: the cost falls hardest on the communities already most at risk. It's also clear what happens when we organize, litigate, and fight back together.
Read the full op-ed.
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Save the Date for MPHA’s Annual Conference
Mark your calendars for the 2026 MPHA Annual Conference on Tuesday, December 8th. We will gather virtually from 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM to explore current challenges and opportunities facing public health and to share priorities for MPHA’s 2026-2027 policy agenda. Watch for details and registration.
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MPHA Career & Volunteer Opportunities Portal
Looking to reach strong candidates interested in public health? We maintain the careers page on our website to help connect employers with job seekers in the field. To add a job, internship, or volunteer posting, please email mpha@mapublichealth.org with the following information: Job Title, Hiring Organization, Brief Summary of Position, Salary Range, and How to Apply.
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MPHA Lawsuit against Secretary Kennedy Continues
Over the past year, we and our sister plaintiffs at the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Public Health Association, and others have gone toe-to-toe with the federal administration, amending our lawsuit each time the federal government takes another unlawful, erratic action to dismantle federal vaccine policy or infrastructure. In March, U.S. District Court Judge Brian Murphy dealt a blow to the administration, granting stays on many of the government’s illegal actions. As we continue through the many steps required to bring the case to trial, our lawsuit is already serving as a stop gap against the damage and holding the administration accountable to act in accordance with law. Stay tuned for more updates as the case moves forward.
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Public Health Under Assault by Today’s Politics
The latest salvo from the federal administration against evidence-based vaccine policy came in the form of an Executive Order seeking to alter the childhood vaccine schedule, again repeating unfounded claims and relitigating debunked science. Fortunately, Massachusetts will continue to follow the overwhelming evidence that vaccines are safe and effective and will continue to abide by the childhood vaccination recommendations of the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP). Massachusetts has some of the highest vaccination rates in the country with more than 96% of children being vaccinated for recommended diseases like measles, mumps, polio, flu, and more. But it can be difficult for parents to know who to listen to with so much “noise” on social media and from our own federal government. This is why we recommend the resource Understanding the Childhood Immunization Schedule. Based on AAP’s recommended vaccine schedule, the resource helps parents and caregivers understand why children receive multiple vaccines early in life and why following the schedule matters.
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VOTE for Public Health: Primary Elections on September 1
Public health is on the ballot in races throughout Massachusetts. Despite the attention on national congressional elections, we are reminded of the idiom that “all politics is local.” From our school committee, city council, and select board members to our state representatives and senators, these elected officials make policy decisions, determine budgets, and impact priorities that directly affect public health and health equity in Massachusetts. You have an opportunity to make your voice heard by voting in the primaries on September 1.
Visit the state’s Elections Division to check your registration status, get information on where to vote or how to vote by mail, and find upcoming elections in your area.
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