Governor Maura Healey, Lieutenant Governor Kim Driscoll, legislative leaders, elected officials and advocates came together for a ceremonial signing of An Act to improve quality and oversight of long-term care, which improves oversight and standards at Long Term Care (LTC) and assisted living facilities to ensure that older adults are receiving high quality care delivered by qualified providers. The bill also takes steps to protect the rights of individuals with disabilities.

Governor Healey signed the bill on September 6th. Some key provisions of the bill include:

• Limits MassHealth estate recovery to the minimum required by federal law and removes estate recovery for residents receiving assistance under CommonHealth and Personal Care Attendant (PCA) services.
• Requires the Department of Public Health (DPH) to inspect LTCs annually.
• Requires MassHealth to review nursing facility rates every two years and provide additional funding for bariatric nursing facilities and 1-on-1 staffing for nursing facility residents requiring 24-hour monitoring and supervision.
• Establishes a new fund to support grants to develop new Certified Nursing Assistants and Licensed Practical Nurses, along with leadership and supervisory training for nursing home leaders. The fund also establishes a no interest or forgivable capital loan program to off-set certain capital costs, including the development of specialized care units.
• Requires LTCs to develop individualized outbreak response plans and DPH to establish and implement training and education programs on topics such as infection prevention and control, resident care plans, and staff safety programs.
• Requires staff training on the rights and care of LGBTQ+ older adults and older adults living with HIV and forbidding LTCs from discriminating based on a person’s sexual orientation, gender identity, or HIV status.
• Requires DPH to promulgate regulations related to “small house nursing homes,” which are facilities for no more than 14 residents that are designed to look and feel like a home.
• Requires MassHealth to study the cost and feasibility of changes to the eligibility requirements for Medicaid long-term care services with the goal of reducing the time applicants spend awaiting discharge from acute care