State Health Planning to Improve Access to Care in Massachusetts: Needs and Current ToolsBlue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts FoundationApril 30, 2025 A well-functioning health care system should provide affordable and timely access to needed health care for all residents, without regard to their race, ethnicity, income, zip code, age, gender, or sexual orientation. The […]
Category: Spotlight
New PESP report reveals private equity continues to acquire and bankrupt nursing homesPrivate Equity Stakeholder Project (PESP), April 23, 2025 The Private Equity Stakeholder Project (PESP) has released a report, “Private Equity Is Continuing to Acquire – and Bankrupt – Nursing Homes,” which reveals that private equity firms continue to acquire nursing home facilities. This […]
Trump Cuts Threaten Agency Running Meals on Wheels New York Times (free access), April 24, 2025By Reed Abelson A tiny division responsible for overseeing services for people with disabilities and older Americans is being dismantled as part of an overhaul by Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the health secretary. Every Monday, Maurine Gentis, a retired teacher, […]
Five years ago, in the earliest days of the Covid pandemic, Dignity Alliance Massachusetts was established as a volunteer-driven to transform the provision of long-term services and care in the Commonwealth. Since that time, hundreds of individuals and organizations have used their collective voices and efforts to make a real difference through legislation, regulatory reform, […]
Sara Kallock (1987-2024)Sara’s 38th birthday is April 15. Sara Kallock was an active DignityMA participant for the last months of her life. Sara was diagnosed with Stage 4 metastatic cancer of the pancreas in mid-September 2023. She became involved with DignityMA after months of advocating on behalf of her father who was a veteran receiving […]
2024 Double G Citations: Significant Increase in Nursing Home Noncompliance and Penalties Long Term Care Community Coalition Substandard care, abuse, and neglect are persistent and widespread problems in nursing homes, primarily due to inadequate enforcement of minimum safety standards. To help combat this, the federal Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) imposes automatic penalties […]
HHS’s Transformation to Make America Healthy Again U. S. Department of Health and Human Services, March 27, 2025 The restructuring of HHS is proceeding in accordance with President Trump’s Executive Order, “Implementing the President’s ‘Department of Government Efficiency’ Workforce Optimization Initiative.” Over the past four years, during the Biden administration, HHS’s budget increased by 38% […]
Private equity firms consolidating homes for disabled *Washington Post, March 18, 2025By Peter Whoriskey Summary:Private equity firms are increasingly acquiring companies that care for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities, traditionally a nonprofit sector, according to a report by the Private Equity Stakeholders Project. The report warns that this trend may prioritize investor profits over […]
Nursing home funds used on designer suits, lingerie, spa service, complaint alleges Boston 25 News, March 6, 2025By Ted Daniel A former Boston nursing home boss and two of his employees have been accused of embezzling $3 million dollars, according to a newly filed lawsuit in Suffolk County Superior Court. The allegations center around Tony […]
What Lies Ahead For Medicaid In Budget Reconciliation?Health AffairsBy Sara Rosenbaum and Alison BarkoffFebruary 11, 2025 President Trump recently stated, “We will love and cherish” Medicaid, promising that budget cutting would be limited to finding waste and abuse. But that sentiment is not likely to prevail as Congress moves forward with massive budget cutting efforts, […]