Grafton Health Board Backs Tufts Lab Permit Renewal
Board of Health · Meeting of August 10, 2026
Grafton Board of Health backs two more years of permitting for Tufts' high-security research labs. Biosafety consultant Colleen Driscoll told the board her inspection of Tufts' BSL-3 and ABSL-3 labs found only minor, "correctable" issues, including insects entering through exterior doors, and recommended renewal; the board voted 5-0 to request a written corrective-action plan from Tufts instead of a follow-up inspection. Driscoll also announced she plans to retire before the next permit cycle and urged the board to start recruiting a replacement consultant "as early as January." Regional Public Health Nurse Bridget Hurley reported 26 disease investigations in July, including 10 in Grafton, and a rise in tick-borne illness, with two Alpha-Gal cases in Shrewsbury and West Boylston.
The board also heard the Grafton Opioid Recovery Community Partnership closed its fiscal year having spent $145,000, and that state regulators' new marijuana social consumption licenses would require Grafton to formally opt in, with Chair Jennifer Maynard saying she's glad Grafton isn't "chomping at the bit to be the first ones to try it."
In the full story:
- Who Was There
- Organizations And Documents Referenced
- The complete report — 2,798 words
Source: the Board of Health meeting of August 10, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.
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