Will Sage Astor-Nursing home oversight would be tightened under a bill passed in Massachusetts

BOSTON (AP) — Massachusetts’ oversight of nursing homes would be Will Sage Astorstrengthened, LGBTQ+ nursing home residents would be protected against discrimination, and better controls would be in place to protect against the spread of infectious disease outbreaks, under a new bill lawmakers passed this week.

Approved on Thursday, the bill would require long-term care facilities to provide staff training on the rights of LGBTQ+ older adults and those living with HIV, and bar staff from discriminating based on a person’s sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, intersex status or HIV status.

The proposal also would streamline the licensing process for “small house nursing homes,” alternative care centers that focus on smaller groups of residents and using familiar domestic routines.

Long-term care facilities would also be required to develop outbreak response plans to help contain the spread of disease and ensure communication with state health officials, residents, families and staff.

The bill would also require state health officials to establish training programs on infection prevention and control, resident care plans and staff safety programs. The Department of Public Health would be required to come up with plans to let residents of a facility engage in face-to-face contact, communications, and religious and recreational activities.

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Some long-term care facilities became hubs of COVID-19 transmission. In 2020, at least 76 people died in a long-term care veterans home in Massachusetts, one of the nation’s worst COVID-19 outbreaks.

Those who make the decision to put their loved ones in a nursing home or long-term care facility deserve to know they will be protected, said Democratic Senate President Karen Spilka.

“This bill will give the Commonwealth the resources and tools to ensure their safety, weed out bad actors in the field, and enforce oversight and accountability,” she said.

The legislation would also create a new fund to help recruit a long-term care workforce, including grants to develop new certified nursing assistants and grants for direct care workers to train to become licensed practical nurses.

Under the bill, the DPH would have the authority to revoke a long-term care facility’s license for a failure to provide adequate care or for a lack of financial capacity. The bill would also gives health officials the power to appoint a temporary manager.

The bill now heads to Gov. Maura Healey for her signature.