Estimated reading time: 4 minutes
This one’s interesting.
Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey is pushing a plan to expand hunting access across the state and she’s not pitching it as tradition or conservation. She’s calling it public health policy, per Boston 25 News.
The announcement comes as the state deals with two growing problems: more deer… and more issues tied to them.
State data shows car crashes involving deer are up roughly 51% over the past decade, and last year alone saw more than 11,000 reported cases of tick-borne illnesses.
And it’s not just Lyme disease anymore.
Officials say newer, more complex tick-related conditions are on the rise, including Alpha-gal syndrome, a red meat allergy linked to tick bites that the state now wants to track more closely.
So what’s the solution? More hunters in the woods.
The proposal includes lifting Massachusetts’ long-standing ban on Sunday hunting, easing restrictions on crossbow use, and allowing bow hunting as close as 250 feet from homes in certain cases.
Supporters say those changes could open up thousands of acres that are currently off-limits, especially in suburban areas where deer populations have exploded.
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Places like Falmouth, where this was announced, are already dealing with the consequences. Too many deer. Not enough pressure. But here’s the catch.
Less than 1% of Massachusetts residents currently hold a hunting license.
So even if access expands, the question becomes: Who’s actually going to do the hunting?
Critics say these changes won’t move the needle much and argue deer populations have been climbing steadily for decades regardless. Supporters see it differently.
They argue this is long overdue and that removing outdated restrictions is the first step toward getting things under control. Either way, it’s a shift.
A blue-state governor openly pushing to expand hunting, not for sport, but for safety. And depending on how this plays out, it might not be the last state to take that approach.
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is a seasoned outdoorsman, lifelong hunter, and the kind of guy who’d rather track whitetails than scroll social media. As an editor for GunsAmerica, he’s got a sharp eye for spotting both solid gear and bad gun laws. Whether he’s deep in the woods or deep in editorial deadlines, Larry brings a no-nonsense, tell-it-like-it-is approach to firearms, hunting, and the great American tradition of self-reliance. If there’s a hot debate on gun rights or the latest in hunting tech, you can bet Larry’s got an opinion—and it’s probably backed up with both facts and field experience.
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