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| 2 | 2 | | HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 1026 FILED ON: 1/14/2025 |
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| 3 | 3 | | HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 1351 |
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| 4 | 4 | | The Commonwealth of Massachusetts |
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| 5 | 5 | | _________________ |
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| 6 | 6 | | PRESENTED BY: |
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| 7 | 7 | | Christine P. Barber |
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| 8 | 8 | | _________________ |
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| 9 | 9 | | To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in General |
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| 10 | 10 | | Court assembled: |
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| 11 | 11 | | The undersigned legislators and/or citizens respectfully petition for the adoption of the accompanying bill: |
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| 12 | 12 | | An Act ensuring equal access to medical treatments essential for people with a developmental |
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| 13 | 13 | | disability, intellectual disability, or autism. |
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| 14 | 14 | | _______________ |
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| 15 | 15 | | PETITION OF: |
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| 16 | 16 | | NAME:DISTRICT/ADDRESS :DATE ADDED:Christine P. Barber34th Middlesex1/14/2025James Arciero2nd Middlesex2/21/2025Jennifer Balinsky Armini8th Essex2/11/2025Manny Cruz7th Essex2/26/2025James B. EldridgeMiddlesex and Worcester2/10/2025William C. Galvin6th Norfolk2/25/2025Sean Garballey23rd Middlesex3/7/2025Colleen M. Garry36th Middlesex2/10/2025Carmine Lawrence Gentile13th Middlesex2/15/2025James K. Hawkins2nd Bristol2/11/2025Christopher Hendricks11th Bristol2/10/2025Natalie M. Higgins4th Worcester2/8/2025Kevin G. Honan17th Suffolk2/25/2025Vanna Howard17th Middlesex2/14/2025Patrick Joseph Kearney4th Plymouth1/31/2025Mary S. Keefe15th Worcester3/4/2025David Henry Argosky LeBoeuf17th Worcester2/10/2025 2 of 2 |
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| 17 | 17 | | David Paul Linsky5th Middlesex2/5/2025John J. Marsi6th Worcester2/13/2025Adrianne Pusateri Ramos14th Essex3/6/2025Thomas M. Stanley9th Middlesex3/4/2025Steven Ultrino33rd Middlesex3/6/2025Erika Uyterhoeven27th Middlesex2/19/2025Susannah M. Whipps2nd Franklin2/7/2025Bud L. Williams11th Hampden2/11/2025 1 of 2 |
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| 18 | 18 | | HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 1026 FILED ON: 1/14/2025 |
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| 19 | 19 | | HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 1351 |
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| 20 | 20 | | By Representative Barber of Somerville, a petition (accompanied by bill, House, No. 1351) of |
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| 21 | 21 | | Christine P. Barber and others relative to ensuring equal access to medical treatments essential |
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| 22 | 22 | | for people with a developmental disability, intellectual disability, or autism. Health Care |
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| 23 | 23 | | Financing. |
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| 24 | 24 | | [SIMILAR MATTER FILED IN PREVIOUS SESSION |
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| 25 | 25 | | SEE HOUSE, NO. 128 OF 2023-2024.] |
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| 26 | 26 | | The Commonwealth of Massachusetts |
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| 27 | 27 | | _______________ |
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| 28 | 28 | | In the One Hundred and Ninety-Fourth General Court |
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| 29 | 29 | | (2025-2026) |
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| 30 | 30 | | _______________ |
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| 31 | 31 | | An Act ensuring equal access to medical treatments essential for people with a developmental |
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| 32 | 32 | | disability, intellectual disability, or autism. |
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| 33 | 33 | | Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority |
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| 34 | 34 | | of the same, as follows: |
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| 35 | 35 | | 1 Chapter 118E of General Laws, as appearing in the 2018 Official Edition is hereby |
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| 36 | 36 | | 2amended by inserting after section 62 the following section:- |
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| 37 | 37 | | 3 Section 63. The Division shall cover the cost of habilitative and rehabilitative medically |
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| 38 | 38 | | 4necessary treatments for individuals aged 21 and older who are receiving coverage under this |
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| 39 | 39 | | 5chapter and who have been diagnosed with any of the following disorders as defined in the most |
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| 40 | 40 | | 6recent version of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM): |
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| 41 | 41 | | 7developmental disability, an intellectual disability, or autism spectrum disorder. The diagnoses |
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| 42 | 42 | | 8must be made by a licensed physician or a licensed psychologist who determines the care to be |
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| 43 | 43 | | 9medically necessary. Treatments shall include, but shall not be limited to, applied behavior 2 of 2 |
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| 44 | 44 | | 10analysis provided or supervised by a licensed behavior analyst that is necessary to develop, |
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| 45 | 45 | | 11maintain or restore, to the maximum extent practicable, the functioning of an individual. In |
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| 46 | 46 | | 12addition, the Division shall cover the cost of both dedicated and non-dedicated augmentative and |
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| 47 | 47 | | 13alternative communication devices, including, but not limited to, medically necessary tablets. |
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