AARP Maryland Advocacy Update: 2025 Wins!

IT'S A WRAP! 2025 LEGISLATIVE UPDATE

The 2025 Legislative session is now complete with twenty-seven of the bills on which you worked being approved by the Governor and one we opposed not passing. Another successful year by all counts! Below are some of the highlights followed by the complete list of these twenty-eight bills.

Prescription Drugs
The Prescription Drug Affordability Board’s authority, beginning October 1, will have the authority to set upper payment limits on high-cost prescription drugs for all Marylanders.

Utilities
Two wide ranging bills were passed. One will improve oversight of electric companies’ decision-making processes through increased transparency of and reporting on their votes. Another bill authorizes the Department of Housing and Community Development to issue loans towards reducing greenhouse gas emissions in certain multi-family dwellings; and the Public Service Commission in rate setting procedures, to require Investor-Owned Gas or Electric Public Service Companies to provide cost comparisons that contribute to just and reasonable rates. New legislation will also establish a process to provide two residential electric customer bill credits in fiscal 2026.

Health Care
The Maryland Department of Health (MDH) will establish and maintain an online directory of home care providers that includes details about those providers such as special skills and abuse/neglect reports; and increase public awareness of and access to evidence-based information regarding brain health and dementia care. The MDH also strengthens the Maryland Interested Parties Advisory Group to address critical issues affecting Medicaid home and community-based services such as a qualified direct care workforce.

Institutional Care
The Maryland Department of Health will increase its oversight of nursing homes by reviewing and reporting to the Governor, cost reports and other nursing home data; and upon request from a county, delegate site visits and full surveys of nursing homes to that county—both actions designed to ensure nursing homes meet state standards.

Telehealth
Access to and reimbursement parity for Telehealth will continue due to legislation that will extend provisions that were set to expire.

Preventing Elder Financial Exploitation
A local department of social services that is investigating alleged exploitation of a vulnerable adult will have access to federal law enforcement and information that may be useful in that investigation.

Consumer Protection
AARP helped to both pass and defeat legislation to protect consumers from financial fraud and exploitation. In one case, new legislation will enhance regulatory oversight of virtual currency kiosks. In another, AARP helped to defeat a bill that would have made it easier for financial lending services to mislead individuals about the services they were offering and the financial risks involved.

Social Connections
State agencies will partner with local entities to bolster community involvement and diminish social isolation through group activities, volunteer services, and digital training to encourage social networks.

Affordable Housing
A new state policy will take effect October 1^st to support the creation of accessory dwelling units on land zoned for single-family homes.

Behavioral Health
The Maryland Behavioral Health Crisis Response System will coordinate with the 9-8-8 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline Network to provide mental health services throughout the state and prevent duplication of services in certain regions.

Disability Reduced Fare Program
The Maryland Transit Administration will, beginning October 1, automatically renew the Disability Reduced Fare program certification of an enrollee who is permanently disabled.

Veterans
Six new bills passed that elevate awareness of a veteran’s eligibility for veteran’s benefits through a variety of procedures including notation of veteran status on a variety of licenses, certificates, registrations, and public profiles.

AARP MARYLAND 2025 PRIORITY LEGISLATIVE SUCCESSES

Home – Based Care
HB 1142 Public Health - Maryland Interested Parties Advisory Group – Establishment (Delegate Bagnal). Strengthens the Maryland Interested Parties Advisory Group (IPAG) by codifying its role within the Maryland Department of Health and expanding its duties to address critical issues affecting Medicaid home and community-based services (HCBS). For many older Marylanders, Medicaid-funded home and community-based services are a lifeline, allowing them to age in place rather than entering costly institutional settings. However, challenges persist in securing a sufficient, well-trained, and compensated direct care workforce to meet the growing demand for services. HB 1142 takes a significant step forward in ensuring that Medicaid payment rates support an adequate and qualified direct care workforce, which is essential for sustaining HCBS in Maryland. Effective July 1, 2025. https://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/Legislation/Details/HB1142?ys=2025RS
Approved by the Governor

HB 1004/ SB 748 Public Health - Alzheimer's Disease and Related Dementias - Information on Prevalence and
Treatment (Delegate Martinez/Senator Kramer). Requires the Maryland Department of Health to collaborate with key stakeholders to incorporate updated treatment information and increase public awareness through its health outreach programs. Access to reliable, evidence-based information is essential to empowering individuals and families to make informed decisions about brain health and dementia care. Effective October 1, 2025. https://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/Legislation/Details/SB0748?ys=2025RS
Approved by the Governor

HB 1478 Public Health - Home Health Care Providers – Directory (Delegate Hill). Requires the Maryland Department of Health (MDH) to establish and maintain an online directory of each home care provider in the State. The directory must include each provider’s full name, identification number, job title, completed training and certifications, gender, abuse and neglect reports, and associated residential service agency (RSA). The directory must be modeled on existing directories and allow an individual seeking home health care services to search the directory and identify a “home health care provider” based on specified criteria, such as language proficiency, certifications, previous experience, or special skills. Effective June 1, 2025. https://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/Legislation/Details/hb1478
Approved by the Governor

Institutional Care
HB 36/SB 212 Department of Aging – Aging Services – Program Repeal and Consolidation, Chair Health and Government Operations (Chair, Health and Government Operations Committee/Chair, Finance Committee). Repeals the requirement that the Secretary of Aging develop congregate housing services and assisted living programs for seniors; instead, the Maryland Department of Aging (MDOA) must develop, coordinate, and administer a consolidated program. Effective June 1, 2025.  https://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/Legislation/Details/HB0036
Approved by the Governor 

HB 933 Nursing Homes – Cost Reports (Delegate Martinez). Requires the Maryland Department of Health to review the cost reports and other data submitted by each nursing home that participates in the Maryland Medical Assistance Program; and requires the Department to report the findings resulting from the review conducted under the Act to the Governor and certain committees of the General Assembly by October 1, 2025, and each October 1 thereafter through 2029. Effective June 1, 2025.https://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/Legislation/Details/HB0933?ys=2025RS
Approved by the Governor. 

SB 376 Delegation of Authority for Nursing Home Inspections (Senator Kramer). Requires the Maryland Secretary of Health, upon request from a county to delegate site visits and full surveys of nursing homes to that county. By sharing the costs of inspections between the Maryland Department of Health (MDH) and local jurisdictions, the bill aims to improve oversight, streamline inspections, and promote collaboration in ensuring nursing homes meet state standards. Effective June 1, 2025.  https://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/Legislation/Details/SB0376?ys=2025RS
Approved by the Governor 

Prescription Drugs
HB 424/SB 357 – Prescription Drug Affordability Board – Authority for Upper Payment Limits (Lowering Prescription Drug Costs for All Marylanders Now Act). (Delegate Cullison/Senator Gile).
Expands the Board’s authority to set upper payment limits (UPLs) on high-cost prescription drugs for all Marylanders. Effective October 1, 2025. https://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/Legislation/Details/hb0424
Approved by the Governor

Health Care Market Reform
HB 11/SB 902 Health Insurance – Access to Nonparticipating Providers – Referrals, Additional Assistance, and Coverage (Delegate Sample-Hughes/Senator Augustine). Alters and expands existing requirements on health insurance carriers regarding referral procedures for nonparticipating specialists and nonphysician specialists. Effective June 1, 2025. https://mgaleg.maryland.gov/2025RS/fnotes/bil_0001/hb0011.pdf
Approved by the Governor

Telehealth
HB 869/SB 372 – Preserve Telehealth Access Act of 2025 (Delegate Pena-Melnyk/Senator Beidle).
Builds on previous telehealth legislation by extending essential provisions set to expire. Telehealth has proven crucial for many older Marylanders, improving access to care and enabling timely medical attention without the hurdles posed by travel and mobility issues. The bill ensures continued reimbursement parity for telehealth services, helping sustain a vital healthcare option for countless residents. Effective June 1, 2025.  https://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/Legislation/Details/hb0869
Approved by the Governor

Preventing Elder Financial Exploitation
SB 347/HB 542 Adult Protective Services - Investigations and Disclosure of Information (Senator Love/Delegate Crutchfield). Authorizes a local department of social services to request assistance from federal law enforcement officers in an investigation relating to an alleged vulnerable adult, as appropriate. The bill also alters statutory provisions regarding the prohibited disclosure of information concerning an applicant or recipient of specified services to include adult protective services (APS). Effective October 1, 2025. https://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/Legislation/Details/SB0347?ys=2025RS
Approved by the Governor

SB 205/HB 246 Human Services - Adult Protective Services (Chair, Judicial Proceedings Committee/Chair, Judiciary Committee). Specifies an exception to the general prohibition against the disclosure of any information concerning an applicant or recipient of specified services. In relation to adult protective services (APS), disclosure of information is not prohibited to an officer or employee of any state or local government or the United States if the officer or employee is responsible for conducting an investigation in an official capacity and the disclosure is relevant to the investigation. The identity of a person who makes a mandatory report of the potential abuse, neglect, self‐neglect, or exploitation of an alleged vulnerable adult may be disclosed. Effective October 1, 2025.  https://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/Legislation/Details/HB0246
Approved by the Governor

Anti-Fraud Advocacy
SB 305 – Financial Institutions and Activities – Virtual Currency Kiosk Registration and Regulations (Senator Beidle). Requires virtual currency kiosk operators to register with the state and comply with state regulations. This legislation aims to enhance consumer protection and ensure regulatory oversight of virtual currency kiosks. Effective July 1, 2025. https://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/Legislation/Details/sb0305
Approved by the Governor

Consumer Protections
HB 1471 Innovative Financial Product or Service Certification Program (Delegate Amprey). Establishes a certification program for certain financial products, specifically peer-to-peer lending services, and would exempt certified entities from essential consumer protection laws related to lending, lender licensing, and collection agencies. This bill raises significant concerns for older Marylanders, who are often targeted by high-risk lending schemes, misleading financial products, and aggressive debt collection practices. https://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/Legislation/Details/Hb1471
AARP Maryland Opposed, and the bill did not pass.

Utilities
HB 1035/SB937 Electricity and Gas – Emissions Reductions, Rate Regulation, Cost Recovery, Infrastructure Planning, Renewable Energy Portfolio Standard, and Energy Assistance Programs (Next Generation Energy Act). (The Speaker and Delegate Wilson/The President and Senators Feldman, Attar, Brooks, Simonaire, and M. Washington). Authorizes the Department of Housing and Community Development to issue loans, in addition to grants, for certain purposes relating to reducing direct greenhouse gas emissions from certain multifamily residential buildings; requires the Maryland Energy Administration, in coordination with the Public Service Commission and the Department of Natural Resources, to pursue certain agreements with neighboring states and federal agencies related to the development of new nuclear energy generation stations. The bill also established a process to provide two residential electric customer bill credits in fiscal 2026. Effective June 1, 2025. Provisions establishing an expedited approval process for specified energy generation resources terminate June 30, 2030. https://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/Legislation/Details/hb1035 Approved by the Governor

HB 121/SB 37 Electric Companies – Regional Transmission Organizations – Report (Utility Transparency and Accountability Act). (Delegate Charkoudian/Senator Hester). Aims to improve oversight of electric companies' decision-making processes by increasing transparency in their votes within regional energy organizations. This bill requires each electric company (excluding municipal electric utilities) to submit an annual report to the Maryland Public Service Commission (PSC) detailing every recorded vote the company casts in meetings of the Pennsylvania, Jersey, and Maryland Regional Transmission Organization (PJM). PJM is the regional transmission organization responsible for Maryland's electric grid, and most electric companies in the state participate in its decision-making processes when determining rates. Effective October 1, 2025. https://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/Legislation/Details/SB0037?ys=2025RS
Approved by the Governor 

Work and Save/Retirement Savings
HB 825/SB 41 Maryland Small Business Retirement Savings Board – Membership Alteration (Delegate Pena-Melnyk/Senator Rosapepe). Adds the Comptroller, or the Comptroller’s designee, as a member of the Maryland Small Business Retirement Savings Board. Effective October 1, 2025. https://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/Legislation/Details/hb0825
Approved by the Governor

High Speed Internet
SB 223/HB 158 – Social Connections Program (Chair, Finance Committee/Chair, Health and Government Operations Committee). Establishes a program to diminish social isolation and bolster community involvement, particularly for older adults and other vulnerable groups. State agencies would partner with local entities to provide group activities, volunteer services, and digital training to encourage stronger social networks. The overarching goal is to enhance mental health, combat loneliness, and create supportive community ties across Maryland. Effective October 1, 2025. https://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/Legislation/Details/sb0223
Approved by the Governor

Affordable Housing
HB 1466/SB 891 Land Use and Real Property Accessory Dwelling Units Requirements and Prohibitions (Delegate Stewart/Senator M. Washington). Establishes a state policy to promote and encourage the creation of accessory dwelling units (ADUs) on land zoned for single-family residential use to meet housing needs. Effective October 1, 2025. https://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/Legislation/Details/HB1466?ys=2025RS
Approved by the Governor

Other Advocacy
HB 31 Consumer Protection - Right to Repair - Powered Wheelchairs (Delegate Kaufman).
Generally, requires a manufacturer to make available (on fair and reasonable terms and costs, as specified) any documentation, parts, embedded software, firmware, or tools that are intended for use with a powered wheelchair (or any part), inclusive of any updates, to an independent repair provider or owner. The bill applies only to documentation, parts, embedded software, firmware, or tools that are necessary for an independent repair provider or owner to perform services with respect to specified parts (e.g., batteries and battery chargers, nonprogrammable joysticks, joystick housings or brackets, etc.). The bill only applies prospectively. Effective October 1, 2025. https://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/Legislation/Details/HB0031?ys=2025RS
Approved by the Governor 

HB 214/SB 208 Human Services - Maryland Assistive Technology Program – Establishment (Chair, Appropriations Committee/Chair, Finance Committee). Codifies the federally funded Maryland Technology Assistance Program (MDTAP) into statute as the Maryland Assistive Technology Program in the Department of Disabilities (MDOD). The program must provide access to or conduct assistive technology services that include any activity described in the federal 21st Century Assistive Technology Act. Effective October 1, 2025. https://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/Legislation/Details/hb0214
Approved by the Governor

HB450 Maryland Transit Administration – Disability Reduced Fare Program – Renewal for Permanently Disabled Individuals (Delegate Guyton). Requires the Maryland Transit Administration to automatically renew the Disability Reduced Fare program certification of an enrollee who is permanently disabled. Effective October 1, 2025.https://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/Legislation/Details/HB0450?ys=2025RS
Approved by the Governor

SB 900/HB 1146 Maryland Behavioral Health Crisis Response System – Integration of 9-8-8 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline Network and Outcome Evaluations (Senator Augustine/Delegate White Holland). Requires each crisis communication center in the Maryland Behavioral Health Crisis Response System to coordinate with the 9-8-8 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline Network to provide support services would benefit the residents of Maryland. This would provide the mental health services needed throughout the State and prevent duplication of services in certain regions. Effective July 1, 2025. https://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/Legislation/Details/sb0900
Approved by the Governor

HB 699/SB 491 General Provisions – Veterans Benefits – Honorable Discharge (Delegate Allen/Senator Gile). Expands the scope of honorable discharge to include a diagnosis of Post Traumatic Stress, Traumatic Brain Injury, or for those who experienced sexual trauma. Effective October 1, 2025. https://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/Legislation/Details/SB0491?ys=2025RS Approved by the Governor

SB 48 Department of General Services – Identification Cards – Veteran Status Notification (Senator Simonaire).
Authorizes the Department of General Services (DGS) to include a notation on an “identification card” indicating the holder is a veteran if the individual presents specified documentation to DGS. Effective October 1, 2025.https://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/Legislation/Details/sb0048
Approved by the Governor

SB 67 Health Occupations Boards – Notation of Veteran Status and Eligibility for Benefits (Senator Simonaire). Authorizes each health occupations board to establish a process to include a notation of an individual’s veteran status on a license, certificate, registration, or public profile. The bill establishes additional specifications for any process implemented by a board. Effective October 1, 2025. https://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/Legislation/Details/sb0067
Approved by the Governor

SB89 Department of the Environment – Notation of Veteran Status (Senator Simonaire). Authorizes the Maryland Department of the Environment (MDE) to establish a process in collaboration with one or more boards under its direction and control that requires a board to include a notation of an individual’s veteran status on a professional license or certificate. The bill establishes additional specifications for any process implemented by MDE. Effective October 1, 2025.https://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/Legislation/Details/sb0089
Approved by the Governor

SB 114 Maryland Department of Labor – Licenses – Notation of Veteran Status and Eligibility for Benefits (Senators Simonaire and M. Jackson). Authorizes units in the Maryland Department of Labor to establish a certain process to include a notation of veteran status on an occupational license. Effective October 1, 2025. https://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/Legislation/Details/sb0114
Approved by the Governor

SB309 Department of Veterans and Military Families – Communications, Outreach, and Advocacy Program Alterations (Senators Simonaire, Brooks, Carozza).
Requires the Communications, Outreach, and Advocacy Program in the Department of Veterans and Military Families to expand certain services to include service members and their families; and requires the Secretary of Veterans and Military Families to submit an annual report by December 1 of each year to the Governor and the General Assembly that includes a general assessment of communication methods utilized in the support of the Communications, Outreach, and Advocacy Program. Effective October 1, 2025. https://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/Legislation/Details/SB0309?ys=2025RS
Approved by the Governor

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