If you own a small business in Massachusetts — or work for one — here's a number to ruin your Saturday morning coffee: 13 percent. That's the average premium increase health insurers are seeking for next year in the state's "merged market," which covers nearly 700,000 members across small businesses and individuals. It would be the second consecutive year of double-digit hikes, landing at a moment when the economic mood across the state is already sour and employers are making hard choices about whether they can keep offering coverage at all.

Eileen McAnneny, president of the Employer Coalition on Health, didn't mince words: employers are "at a breaking point." And she's not wrong. These proposals are just the opening bid — state regulators at the Division of Insurance will now spend months negotiating the final numbers — but the direction of travel is unmistakable. Health care costs keep climbing, and small businesses, which don't have the leverage of large corporations to push back, keep absorbing the hit. Governor Maura Healey called last year's increases "simply unsustainable." Now the same dynamic is playing out again, heading into an election cycle where affordability is the dominant issue.

Watch for this to become a flashpoint on Beacon Hill this summer. Legislators who've been talking about cost containment will face pressure to actually do something — whether that's rate regulation, bulk purchasing, or taking a harder look at hospital contracts that drive so much of the underlying cost. For now, small business owners are left doing the math and wondering what they can afford to cut.

Full story at CommonWealth Beacon →

The federal government is moving to bar most noncitizens from adjusting their immigration status inside the United States — a dramatic shift that has been standard practice for decades. Local immigration attorneys say thousands of people in Massachusetts are now in limbo: students, temporary visa holders, and others who had been in the process of applying for permanent residency and now face having to return to their home countries to do so. "It makes no sense," one attorney told GBH. This is a big deal, and it's happening fast.

GBH News →

The Supreme Judicial Court moved the long-running standoff between State Auditor Diana DiZoglio and the Legislature one step closer to resolution this week — but "closer" is doing a lot of heavy lifting in that sentence. The SJC gave Attorney General Andrea Campbell a hard deadline to decide whether to represent DiZoglio in her lawsuit to compel legislative cooperation. Campbell said yes — but only through outside counsel, high-profile attorney Shannon Liss-Riordan, who will take the case pro bono. DiZoglio kept jabbing at Campbell anyway. This fight has more chapters left.

CommonWealth Beacon →

A motion to outright reject Mayor Michelle Wu's fiscal year budget proposal failed on a 6-6 tie vote at the Boston City Council this week, exposing real fractures among members over how hard to push back on proposed spending cuts. Six councilors wanted to send Wu a message; six others called that move fiscally irresponsible. With Councilor Gabriela Coletta Zapata out on maternity leave, there was no tiebreaker. The underlying frustrations aren't going away — expect this tension to simmer right through the summer budget deadline.

Boston.com →

Senators Elizabeth Warren and Ed Markey and Representative Ayanna Pressley released a report this week making the case that ending Temporary Protected Status for Haitian immigrants wouldn't just be a humanitarian disaster — it would crack the state's already-strained health care workforce. About 45,000 Massachusetts residents rely on Haitian TPS to live and work here, and many are employed in hospitals, nursing homes, and care facilities. A Supreme Court ruling on whether the Trump administration can dismantle TPS is expected soon.

Boston.com →

An 18-year-old from Randolph was taken into custody Thursday night after allegedly brandishing a semi-automatic pistol in the parking lot outside the South Shore Technical High School prom at Indian Pond Country Club in Kingston. Adrian Arroyo, who was not a student but was known to attendees, threatened to run over a student before pointing the weapon skyward and appearing to chamber a round. Police found him at his Randolph home and he surrendered peacefully. No one was hurt. Charges are expected.

Boston.com →

Beacon Mutual Insurance, a Warwick, R.I.-based workers' compensation insurer that also operates in Massachusetts and Connecticut, has begun notifying 162,000 customers that their personal data — including Social Security numbers, financial account info, and medical records — was stolen in a January ransomware attack. The hacker group INC Ransom has claimed responsibility. If you have workers' comp coverage through Beacon Mutual, check your mail and watch your accounts.

Boston Globe →

Rain is coming for your Memorial Day weekend plans. Sunday looks like a genuine washout — soaking rain from sunrise to sunset — with another round of showers Monday morning before things (hopefully) clear by afternoon. Southeastern Mass. could see up to two inches total. WCVB →

The Healey administration announced $24.5 million in CommonWealth Builder awards to fund 123 new affordable homes for first-time buyers in Boston (Beacon Hill, Mission Hill, Roxbury) and Brockton — worth keeping an eye on as the state's housing push continues to take shape project by project. State House News Service →

A judge ordered an immigrant released after ICE showed up to court with essentially nothing — no arrest warrant, no documentation, no justification for the detention. Federal judges are increasingly moving fast on these cases as ICE detention cases flood the courts. Universal Hub →

Full budget details →

Yesterday's Biggest Contributions

Data from the MA Office of Campaign & Political Finance

Full hearing schedule →

Recent filings with the Massachusetts Office of Campaign and Political Finance:

Candidates

• Tony King (Democratic) — Senate, Norfolk, Plymouth and Bristol — Filed: 5/19/2026
• Margie Palladino (Democratic) — Governor's Council, 3rd District — Filed: 5/18/2026

OCPF →

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