Martha Bebinger

Dr. Jessie Gaeta, chief medical officer of Health Care for the Homeless at Boston Medical Center, stands in a conference room that will soon be converted to a place where patients high on heroin or other drugs can be safely monitored.

Boston's Heroin Users Will Soon Get A Safer Place To Be High

Martha Bebinger

Set to open within a few weeks, the room will not be a place to inject drugs or get high, say health providers. Instead, a nurse will monitor heroin users as they come down from the drug's effects.

A "speedball" mix of heroin and cocaine has caused overdose deaths for decades. Today, high-risk blends may alternatively include heroin or opioid pain pills plus Klonopin, Clonidine, or Fentanyl.

Drug Cocktails Fuel Massachusetts' Overdose Crisis

Martha Bebinger

A state analysis reveals that the majority of overdose deaths in 2014 came from heroin or prescription opioids taken in combination with cocaine, anti-anxiety medications or alcohol.

Martha Galvis has undergone 16 surgeries on her left hand, which was injured by a bomb at the 2013 Boston Marathon.

Marathon Bombing Survivors Face A World That Still Feels Out Of Control

Martha Bebinger

Martha and Alvaro Galvis were wounded in 2013's bombing of the Boston Marathon. One of the hardest things to deal with, they say, is the feeling that something random and scary could happen again.

George Murray, who served in Vietnam, was able to access his medical benefits from the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs relatively easily while living in Boston. But veterans living in other parts of Massachusetts, like Cape Cod, have more difficulty. Across the U.S., VA data show the unevenness in its benefit spending.

VA Data Show Disparities In Veteran Benefits Spending

Quil Lawrence

Nationwide veteran benefits data show a huge variation in coverage from state to state, and even within states. In Massachusetts, access to VA services changes dramatically from Boston to Cape Cod.

In 49 U.S. states, spotting the squished disc in this spinal MRI is still much easier than learning the price of the MRI in advance.

How Much Is That MRI, Really? Massachusetts Shines A Light

Martha Bebinger

A state law now requires insurers to reveal prices of their medical tests, and the variation is amazing, bargain hunters say. An MRI of the back is $614 at one place, $1,800 at another.

Among heroin addicts who are able to quit, 40 to 60 percent relapse within the first year — many within the first weeks of release from a treatment program.

Recovery Coach Helps An Addict Resist Heroin's Lure

Martha Bebinger

A Cape Cod treatment center says it is breaking addiction's hold — and saving money — by offering newly released patients daily, or even hourly, coaching by paid consultants.

From December 2013 to March 2014, the public and private health insurance groups in Massachusetts reported an overall increase in health insurance enrollment by more than 215,000 people. Enrollment in private plans essentially held steady, as enrollment in the state's public plans expanded.

Massachusetts Inches Toward Health Insurance For All

Martha Bebinger

The state is close to having most of its eligible residents covered. But a failed website has delayed the processing of applications, and some of those waiting may yet decide not to buy health plans.

Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney signed a health care reform bill during an April 12, 2006, ceremony at Faneuil Hall in Boston. The bill made Massachusetts the first state in the country to require that all residents have health insurance.

More Health Insurance Equals Fewer Deaths In Massachusetts

Martha Bebinger

The state's death rate declined in the four years after Massachusetts passed a law requiring health insurance. The state's minority residents posted the biggest gains in life expectancy.

Carol Downing is still haunted by memories of last year's marathon. But she's excited about reuniting with other survivors.

Despite Worries, Boston Survivor Heads Back To The Start Line

Martha Bebinger

At last year's Boston Marathon, Carol Downing was just half a mile from the finish line when bombs exploded and injured two of her daughters. This year, she's returning to complete the race.

Governor Deval Patrick of Massachusetts signed the law enacting the state's latest phase of health care on August 6, 2012.

Massachusetts Launches Health Care Shopping Experiment

Martha Bebinger

How much is that colonoscopy? Finding out can range from hard to impossible. Massachusetts now requires that health care providers give patients prices within two days. But that doesn't always happen.