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Governor Charlie Baker defended his handling of the Holyoke Soldiers Home tragedy on Boston Public Radio on Thursday, dismissing criticism from hosts Margery Eagan and Jim Braude that he had shirked personal responsibility in responding to the COVID-19 outbreak that has killed more than 70 veterans living at home.
Unlike a report commissioned by the Baker administration, a Boston Globe Spotlight report brings Baker and Senior Health Secretary Marylou Sudders closer to management issues at home, led by Bennett Walsh and overseen by former Veterans Affairs Secretary Francisco Urea.
Neither Walsh nor Urea inhabit their old posts: Walsh was fired and Urea resigned from their roles in the outbreak, resulting in one of the highest death tolls in any senior care center from the country.
Eagan called Urea responsible for the tragedy at Holyoke Soldiers Home, based on the Spotlight investigation which revealed inconsistencies in the report commissioned by the Baker administration.
Baker denied the characterization of Eagans and instead defended the report commissioned by his administration (known as the Pearlstein Report), the state legislatures report, and the Attorney General’s own investigation.
They are all saying the same thing, that there was not enough supervision of Bennett Walsh, he said. They also say that the organizational structure under which this thing operates has to change.
Braude called the Pearlstein report completely incomplete, questioning whether the role of Sudders was understated and the role of Ureas was overstated.
Baker again objected to this characterization and confirmed that the Pearlstein Report was consistent with legislatures and overwhelmingly adopted by virtually everyone, rejecting the Globes inquiry.
During the interview, Baker also defended his proposal to extend Massachusetts’ tax-free holiday from the standard two-day weekend to the full months of August and September, citing a budget surplus of nearly $ 3.4 billion. of dollars.
The proposal would put an estimated $ 900 million back in the pockets of residents.
Massachusetts people and Massachusetts businesses have created a lot more income than anyone thought we were going to create, Baker said, I think we should give them some back, especially after making a very large deposit in our stabilization fund. .
Critics of Bakers’ proposal say the benefits of the extended tax-free holiday would not bring as much relief to small businesses as to large retailers, which did not face the same financial strain during the COVID pandemic. 19. Eagan asked if Baker would consider restricting tax exemptions to companies with 30 or fewer employees, a suggestion made by a previous caller.
Well, that’s an interesting idea, Baker replied, adding that he would be perfectly happy to talk to the legislature about it.
Others say Baker should use any excess money to deal with those still struggling to recover from the pandemic, such as in housing or employment programs.
Baker also discussed Massachusetts’ COVID-19 vaccination status. After a difficult rollout, has been a national leader in immunization rates and has just passed 4.1 million vaccinations.
I just happen to think we’ve built a really great blended approach to vaccinating people, Baker said, acknowledging that there are limits to reaching the hesitant vaccine.
Baker said the full FDA clearance for the vaccines could be what moves the needle for those who are reluctant to be vaccinated, and may move the needle for his own will to force vaccines on a person. certain title.
Pfizer and Moderna have both sought full FDA clearance; for the time being, vaccines are distributed with emergency use authorization.
I can’t tell you how many people have told me, I’m not going to do this until it’s something other than an emergency use authorization, I want to see the federal government say it’s is permanent, Baker said. I prefer to talk about [mandating vaccines] at the moment. I think it’s a hard sell.
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