Massachusetts 2025-2026 Regular Session

Massachusetts House Bill H778 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	1 of 1
2	2	HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 2944 FILED ON: 1/16/2025
3	3	HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 778
4	4	The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
5	5	_________________
6	6	PRESENTED BY:
7	7	Kate Lipper-Garabedian and Thomas M. Stanley
8	8	_________________
9	9	To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in General
10	10	Court assembled:
11	11	The undersigned legislators and/or citizens respectfully petition for the adoption of the accompanying bill:
12	12	An Act relative to the LGBTQ aging commission.
13	13	_______________
14	14	PETITION OF:
15	15	NAME:DISTRICT/ADDRESS :DATE ADDED:Kate Lipper-Garabedian32nd Middlesex1/16/2025Thomas M. Stanley9th Middlesex1/16/2025Patricia D. JehlenSecond Middlesex2/24/2025 1 of 3
16	16	HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 2944 FILED ON: 1/16/2025
17	17	HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 778
18	18	By Representatives Lipper-Garabedian of Melrose and Stanley of Waltham, a petition
19	19	(accompanied by bill, House, No. 778) of Kate Lipper-Garabedian, Thomas M. Stanley and
20	20	Patricia D. Jehlen relative to the long-term care needs of older LGBTQ adults and their
21	21	caregivers. Elder Affairs.
22	22	The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
23	23	_______________
24	24	In the One Hundred and Ninety-Fourth General Court
25	25	(2025-2026)
26	26	_______________
27	27	An Act relative to the LGBTQ aging commission.
28	28	Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority
29	29	of the same, as follows:
30	30	1 Section 71 of chapter 3 of the General Laws is hereby amended by striking out
31	31	2subsections (a) and (b), as appearing in the 2022 Official Edition, and inserting in place thereof
32	32	3the following 2 subsections:-
33	33	4 (a) There shall be a permanent commission on older lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender,
34	34	5queer and questioning or LGBTQ, adults and their caregivers to consist of the following
35	35	6members or their designees: the house and senate chairs of the joint committee on elder affairs
36	36	7who shall serve as co-chairs; the secretary of elder affairs; the director of housing and
37	37	8community development; the commissioner of public health; the director of the LGBTQIA+
38	38	9Aging Project; the president of Fenway Health; the executive director of the Gay &
39	39	10Lesbian/GLBTQ Legal Advocates & Defenders, Inc.; a representative of the New England
40	40	11Association on HIV Over Fifty, Inc.; the executive director of MassEquality; the executive
41	41	12director of Mass Home Care; the director of AARP Massachusetts; the executive director of the 2 of 3
42	42	13Massachusetts Association of Councils on Aging, Inc.; the director of the Massachusetts Senior
43	43	14Care Association, Inc.; the director of the Home Care Aides Council; and 5 members to be
44	44	15appointed by the governor, 1 of whom shall be a member of the Massachusetts bar who practices
45	45	16elder law, 1 of whom shall be an expert in LGBTQ public policy or research and 3 LGBTQ older
46	46	17adults, at least 1 of whom shall be transgender. The governor's appointees shall ensure that the
47	47	18commission has at least 1 representative from each of the following areas: Cape Cod, western
48	48	19Massachusetts, and central Massachusetts.
49	49	20 (b) The commission shall investigate, analyze, and study the health, housing, financial,
50	50	21psychosocial, and long-term care needs of older LGBTQ adults and their caregivers and shall
51	51	22make recommendations to improve access to benefits and services where appropriate and
52	52	23necessary. In furtherance of its duties, the commission shall: (i) examine the impact of the
53	53	24commonwealth's policies and regulations on older LGBTQ adults and make recommendations to
54	54	25ensure equality of access, treatment, care and benefits; (ii) examine strategies to increase
55	55	26provider awareness of the needs of older LGBTQ adults and their caregivers and improve the
56	56	27competence of and access to treatment, services and ongoing care, including preventive care; (iii)
57	57	28assess the funding and programming needed to enhance services to the growing population of
58	58	29older LGBTQ adults; (iv) examine best practices for increasing access, reducing isolation,
59	59	30preventing abuse and exploitation, promoting independence and self-determination,
60	60	31strengthening caregiving, eliminating disparities and improving quality of life; (v) examine
61	61	32whether certain policies and practices, or the absence of certain policies and practice, promote
62	62	33the premature admission of older LGBTQ adults to institutional care; (vi) recommend, as
63	63	34appropriate and necessary, lower cost and culturally appropriate home and community-based
64	64	35alternatives to institutional care; (vii) examine the feasibility of developing statewide training 3 of 3
65	65	36curricula to improve provider competency in the delivery of health, housing and long-term
66	66	37support services to older LGBTQ adults and their caregivers; and (viii) examine outreach
67	67	38protocols to reduce apprehension among older LGBTQ adults and their caregivers of utilizing
68	68	39mainstream providers.