Greater Worcester

As part of Worcester Business Journal's expansion of its Business Leaders of the Year awards, the publication will honor the top innovators of the past year, recognizing those who hatch and develop ideas for public and private organizations.

For the first time in eight years, legislators on Beacon Hill will see an increase in their base salaries after Gov. Charlie Baker on Thursday certified a pay raise of $2,515 for the 200 members of the House and Senate, bringing their base pay up to $62,547.

A Worcester Superior Court jury last week ordered UMass Memorial Medical Center to pay $250,000 in damages to the widow of a 78-year-old man who died after being admitted to the hospital eight years ago.

Cogmedix, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Westborough-based Coghlin Companies Inc., announced Tuesday it is nearly complete with a 5,000-square-foot expansion of its Worcester facility at 17 Briden St.

As part of its annual Business Leaders of the Year awards, Worcester Business Journal has created a new Hall of Fame designed to honor those in the Central Massachusetts community with a lifetime of achievement in their careers.

Massachusetts officials plan to use their share of a $500,000 federal grant to put more drivers behind the wheels of electric vehicles over the next two years in a bid to spur sales in that market.

Saint Vincent Medical Group on Tuesday announced it will open a new, multispecialty physician practice at Northborough Crossing in January.

UMass Memorial Health Care CEO Eric Dickson said the system is planning affiliations in the year ahead, and larger acquisitions may be possible.

The owner of an independent baked goods distributor that recently relocated to the former Nissen Baking Co. plant Worcester said he sees potential to expand.

Massachusetts lawmakers are fast-tracking legislation to facilitate the expansion of a California biologics company into Worcester.