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Bill

S 479

Evelyn Guile Death

2025-2026 Regular Session Introduced by Kent Williams

Requires long-term care facilities to move toward single-occupancy rooms and private bathrooms, prioritizing resident privacy and safety.

Introduced and adopted
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Bill Summary · S 479

Summary — S.479 (2025): “An Act to improve transparency and accountability for residents of long‑term care”

Note on title discrepancy
- The bill header provided at the top of your request (about repealing a firearms provision) appears unrelated to the text of S.479. This summary follows the bill text filed as “An Act to improve transparency and accountability for residents of long‑term care,” which concerns single‑occupancy rooms in licensed long‑term care facilities in Massachusetts.

Purpose / Intent

To promote resident privacy, dignity, and safety by encouraging and requiring the use of single‑occupancy rooms and private bathrooms in licensed long‑term care facilities, and to align state funding priorities and regulations to support reconfiguration of facilities toward single rooms.

Key provisions

  • Section 1: Amends subsection (g) of M.G.L. c. 111, §70E to require that residents be provided care in their assigned room and be the sole resident of that room unless the resident (or their guardian/health care proxy) mutually agrees to share with a spouse or with no more than one other resident. If there is no second resident, the bathroom must not be shared with any other person.
  • Section 2: Directs the Executive Office of Health and Human Services (EOHHS) to seek federal approval, if necessary, for any appropriate increase in rates to cover single‑occupancy room costs (e.g., Medicaid/Medicare rate adjustments).
  • Section 3: Requires the Department of Public Health (DPH) to promulgate regulations to promote the use of single rooms and single bathrooms in every licensed facility.
  • Section 4: Applicability and compliance timeline — applies to any new or substantial renovation. Facilities holding valid licenses at the bill’s effective date are allowed up to three years from enactment to achieve compliance.
  • Section 5: Amends M.G.L. c. 10, §35TTT(e) to prioritize capital projects that reconfigure facilities to provide single‑occupancy rooms.

Who is affected

  • Long‑term care residents (increased privacy and potential improved infection control)
  • Residents’ guardians and health care proxies (retain ability to consent to roommate arrangements)
  • Nursing homes and other licensed long‑term care facilities (facility design, operations, capital costs)
  • EOHHs and DPH (rulemaking, rate negotiations, regulatory oversight)
  • Payers (state Medicaid program, possibly private payers) if rates or reimbursements are adjusted

Timeline / procedural status (as provided)

  • Filed: 1/17/2025; Introduced in Senate: 2/06/2025
  • Read twice and referred to Committee on Finance (2/06/2025); earlier entries show referral to “Codes”
  • Referred to committee on Elder Affairs (2/27/2025); later referred to Aging & Independence
  • House concurred (2/27/2025)
  • Hearing scheduled: 09/16/2025, 10:00 AM–1:00 PM (A‑2)

Potential impacts and considerations

  • Benefits: greater resident privacy, possible reduction in infection transmission, enhanced dignity and autonomy.
  • Costs: capital investments for reconfiguration, potential reduced bed density leading to capacity and cost implications; EOHHs seeking federal rate approval suggests fiscal impacts may be passed to Medicaid/insurers.
  • Implementation: phased compliance (3‑year window for existing facilities) and rulemaking by DPH will shape operational details and enforcement.

Sponsors and related measures

  • Sponsors listed in document include state legislators and (unusually) many U.S. Senators and Representatives; related companion bill: H.R.1103; related state documents: SD 2382 and prior session bills (S.2612, S.3966, etc.).

If you want, I can: (1) produce a one‑page fact sheet for facility operators estimating renovation cost drivers, or (2) draft a short explainer for residents/advocates about rights and how to consent to shared rooms. Which would be most helpful?

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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