health Archives - Cambridge | Somerville Independent

The Boston Globe Last Ditch lesbian bar story is weird

by Lucky Chiampa September 30, 2026

So weird! The Boston Globe spent a week hyperfocusing on a tiny lesbian bar in the middle of the woods in Greenfield, the Last Ditch, to the applause of right wingers.

LIT

Reviewed: ‘The Sexuality of Care’ talks about a world without hospitals through a tangle of angles

by Josh Cook September 29, 2026

Readers might bristle at the thought but recognize the power of the vision in essays recalling time as a critical care nurse, healing from trauma, and the structures of kink.

NEWS

There are 25 free vaccine clinics in Cambridge and Somerville, and places to get free masks and tests

by Lucky Chiampa September 24, 2026

Free vaccine clinics open across Cambridge and Somerville in October, offering Covid, flu and RSV protection for residents with or without insurance.

NEWS

Warning is lifted over potential algae bloom danger in the Charles River

by Marc Levy September 23, 2026

People and animals need no longer avoid parts of the Charles River from fear of a cyanobacteria algae bloom, health officials said after a 33-day health advisory alert.

NEWS

West Nile Virus risk levels in Cambridge and Somerville are raised to ‘high’ after two county cases

by Marc Levy August 24, 2026

The risk for West Nile Virus in seven metro Boston communities was raised Monday to high as the state revealed a second human case in Massachusetts this year.

NEWS

An algae bloom has returned to the Charles River that could be dangerous to people, fatal to a dog (updated)

by Marc Levy August 21, 2026

Residents warned by health officials to avoid parts of the Charles River because of a potentially dangerous cyanobacteria algae bloom.

DID YOU KNOW

The Magazine Beach bathhouse debate and the politics of public hygiene

by Beth Folsom of History Cambridge August 3, 2026

Many Cantabrigians at the turn of the 20th century lacked bathing facilities at their homes, so a swimming beach and bathhouse were not just for leisure.

LIT

Reviewed: ‘On the Other Side is March’ is a clear-eyed look at caring for a fading parent

by Josh Cook July 28, 2026

Sólrún Michelsen tries to give caregivers language and images that make it easier to bear a burden, hold on when adrift or see in the fog.

OPINION

Barber’s abortion care bill heads to the Senate for women still being denied treatment

by Christine Barber July 27, 2026

My bill replaces a narrow checklist of pregnancy health care exceptions with a single standard: a physician’s professional judgment.

BICYCLING

Before a 343-mile fundraising ride to New York’s 9/11 Memorial, bicyclists gather in Cambridge

by Marc Levy July 25, 2026

Cambridge is the starting point for a 343-mile bicycle ride to New York for the 25th anniversary of 9/11, raising money for organizations serving first responders and cancer survivors.