AARP Fighting for Nursing Home Reform in the Bay State

While the national health emergency surrounding covid may be over, the three year pandemic has highlighted the need for reforms in long term care.  AARP continues to push for comprehensive changes in Massachusetts.

According to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), since the pandemic hit, nationwide COVID-19 has killed more than 168,000 residents and staff of long-term care.

AARP has heard directly from thousands of families about what happened to their loved ones in nursing homes—and the accounts are gut-wrenching. 

AARP supports a number of bills that are currently under consideration on Beacon Hill. The bills would increase nurse staffing rations, create pathways to single occupancy rooms, increase the personal needs allowance for residents and reserve beds for residents during leaves of absence.

The Long Term Care Reform bills AARP supports:

• House Bill No. 615 - An Act To Ensure The Quality Of Care In Nursing Homes
• House Bill No. 648 and Senate Bill No. 379 – An Act to Improve Quality and Oversight in Long Term Care.
• House Bill No. 626, Senate Bill No. 115 and Senate Bill No. 375- An Act Increasing The Personal Needs Allowance For Residents Of Long Term Care Facilities
• Senate Bill No. 393 - An Act Relative To Reserving Beds In Nursing Homes During Certain Leaves Of Absence
  

On Monday, May 15, AARP Massachusetts testified in front of the Joint Committee on Elder Affairs, urging the committee to pass these bills.

Sandra Harris, AARP Massachusetts State President, testified in favor of House Bill No 615 An Act to Ensure the Quality of Care in Nursing Homes.  

The bill would protect seniors in nursing homes and other long term care facilities by continuing and improving commonsense policies:

• Increasing minimum nurse staffing ratios.

• Addressing and creating social isolation prevention policies.

• Creating a pathway to single occupancy rooms in all facilities

“Taken together with House Bill No. 648 and Senate Bill No. 379 – An Act to Improve Quality and Oversight in Long Term Care this bill will go a long way to address the known shortfalls in the system,” said Harris.

Read Sandra Harris' entire testimony here.

Massachusetts State Director Mike Festa also went before the Elder Affairs committee. He testified in favor of bills that would increase the personal needs allowance for long term care residents and reserve beds for residents who temporary leave the facility for certain reasons.

Medicaid-eligible nursing home residents are permitted to keep a personal needs allowance to cover basic expenses such as personal hygiene supplies and mobile phones.  At both the state and federal level, AARP supports adjustments annually to account for changes in the cost of personal needs.

An Act Increasing The Personal Needs Allowance For Residents Of Long Term Care Facilities, House Bill No. 626, Senate Bill No. 115 and Senate Bill No. 375, would raise the amount.

“AARP believes long term services and supports should emphasize the independence, dignity, autonomy, and privacy of individual consumers so they can maximize their physical and psychosocial potential, and the personal needs allowance helps to do so” says State Director Mike Festa.

AARP also testified in favor Senate Bill No. 393- An Act Relative To Reserving Beds In Nursing Homes During Certain Leaves Of Absence.

Individuals who reside in nursing homes consider the facility their home.  Right now, when they leave for a hospital stay of visit with family federal law requires the facility to give them with the next available bed in that facility; not necessarily the bed or room they had been living in.

AARP believes that’s not good enough. We back a “bed hold” requirement. It would mean that if a nursing home resident has to go to the hospital for a few days, they won’t risk losing their bed at the place they now call home.

Read Mike Festa's testimony here.

House Bill No. 615 - An Act To Ensure The Quality Of Care In Nursing Homes is sponsored by Rep. Ruth B. Balser (D- Newton).

An Act Increasing The Personal Needs Allowance For Residents Of Long Term Care Facilities, House Bill No. 626, is sponsored by Rep. Sean Garballey (D-Arlington). Senate Bill No. 115 is sponsored by Sen. Mark C. Montigny (D- New Bedford). Senate Bill No. 375 is sponsored by Sen. Patricia D. Jehlen (D-Somerville).

Senate Bill No. 393 - An Act Relative To Reserving Beds In Nursing Homes During Certain Leaves Of Absence is sponsored by Sen. Mark C. Montigny (D-New Bedford)