By Steve Crane | Editor-in-chief
“Five years ago, we thought, ‘Let’s try something simple.’ And that was to just call people and talk to them on the phone and make a connection with them. Loneliness and social isolation really are of epidemic proportions -- COVID didn’t cause it, but it certainly accelerated that.” - Meritus Health CEO Maulik Joshi on the Care Caller program, one of the efforts by groups in the state to address the loneliness epidemic.
It’s Election Day, finally. About a million Marylanders have voted already, but if you waited until today, polls will be open until 8 p.m. You can find out where to vote, and who to vote for, by visiting our Voter Guide. In the meantime, we have your news for this Tuesday.
The loneliness epidemic that spiked during the COVID-19 pandemic didn’t go away when social distancing stopped, and it’s being recognized as a real public health concern. But health groups around the state have launched some innovative, and simple, programs to deal with the problem, as Danielle J. Brown reports.
Howard County Executive Calvin Ball, with a little more than a month left in his final term, announced Monday that he will step down in a couple weeks to become interim president of Baltimore City Community College, a return to the place where he was working before his election eight years ago. William J. Ford has that story. And the polls opened at 7 a.m. today, but they didn’t open by themselves. Capital News Service’s Calista Sybrant talks to the workers who run the polling places and make sure your voting goes smoothly.
Those stories plus more headlines are below. And don’t miss your chance to enter our election contest — entries are due by 8 p.m., when polls close. Enjoy!
The loneliness epidemic that began during the COVID-19 lockdown remains and can cause physical as well as emotional damage, officials say, which is why some organizations are taking steps to reach out to isolated or lonely individuals. (Photo by Halfpoint Images/Getty Stock photo)
By Danielle J. Brown
In the social distancing days of the COVID-19 pandemic, national health leaders warned that social isolation and loneliness not only bring emotional wounds but also take a physical toll on the body, increasing risks of premature death and other health outcomes.
Social distancing may be gone, but experts say that social isolation is still a problem, particularly for seniors but also for people with disabilities and teens to young adults.
One hospital CEO says there may be a simple solution, which also has its roots in the pandemic -- just pick up the phone. Meritus Health CEO Maulik Joshi created a pilot program in the early years of the COVID-19 pandemic in which volunteers called patients who identified as lonely to simply check in on them – ask about their day, bond over shared interests like sports, and build an ongoing connection.
It’s just one of the programs that organizations in the state have launched to address the problems of social isolation and loneliness.
Howard County Executive Calvin Ball (D) in the State House for the 2025 State of the State address. Ball announced Monday he will step down from the executive's post to become interim president at Baltimore City Community College. (Photo by Bryan P. Sears/Maryland Matters)
By William J. Ford
After making history as Howard County’s first Black county executive, Calvin Ball announced Monday he will step down this month to become interim president at Baltimore City Community College.
Ball, 51, returns to the city’s two-year college where he worked as director of its Complete College program, which provides resources to help students transition to community college, before being elected county executive in 2018. Ball called it “a full-circle moment,” but he returns to an institution that was the subject of a critical state audit this year over its enrollment and procurement procedures.
Ball, who could not run for reelection because of term limits, wrote on Facebook that he plans to step down Nov. 16, just three weeks before the new county executive is scheduled to be sworn in. Brandee Ganz, the county’s chief administrative office, will serve as acting county executive until the new executive takes office Dec. 7.
Poll workers check in early voters at the Activity Center at Bohrer Park in Gaithersburg on Oct. 29, 2026. (Photo by Calista Sybrant/Capital News Service)
By Calista Sybrant
On the last day of early voting Thursday, nearly 40 poll workers at a Montgomery County election site directed voters from one station to the next, guiding them through the process of casting their ballots.
The poll workers were just a few of thousands who show up at polling sites across Maryland to help voters and to ensure elections run smoothly. They spend long hours training, helping voters navigate elections and responding to unexpected challenges. Election experts said poll workers play an important role in administering elections, from checking in voters to helping make sure ballots are cast properly. Without enough workers to staff polling stations, election officials said the voting process may not run smoothly.
“We would have a national crisis if people didn’t serve as poll workers,” said Thomas Hicks, former chairman of the U.S. Election Assistance Commission. “We need three quarters of a million people to serve as poll workers every presidential election cycle, and we’re seeing presidential type numbers for this midterm election.”
IN OTHER NEWS
Election confidence: As concerns rise about the potential for federal influence over the midterm elections, many voting experts and advocates remain confident that the nation’s highly localized systems of administering and counting votes will persevere.
IRS sued over remote work refusal: The IRS is facing a new legal challenge from the National Treasury Employees Union, which says the agency declined to restore telework for federal employees despite an arbitrator's ruling ordering it to do so this summer.
Pervasive PFAS: “Forever chemicals” are polluting a majority of tested Chesapeake Bay region watersheds, according to a new report, which detected PFAS in 100% of waterways tested in the District, 95% in Pennsylvania, 70% in Virginia and 67% in Maryland.
MATTERS YOU MAY HAVE MISSED
Black patriots remembered: A nearly forgotten part of Maryland's Revolutionary War history is now enshrined at the State House, with a new monument to the roughly 150 Black Marylanders — some free, some enslaved— who fought against the British.
A break for Medicaid patients: “Medically frail” Medicaid recipients with a disability or a chronic illness will not have to prove they are unable to work to be exempted from new work requirements that take effect next year, a federal judge ruled.
Vineyards start to rebuild: Vineyards across Maryland that were devastated by a late freeze this spring have begun the yearslong process of rebuilding their fields, as wineries look forward to a couple years of challenging vintages for Maryland wines.
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