On May 5, 2025, Governor Healey signed an Executive Order and released a new age-friendly state plan which will outline improved ways for Massachusetts agencies to serve older adults, following feedback gathered from across the state. In recognition of Older Americans Month, Governor Healey, Lieutenant Governor Driscoll and Aging & Independence Secretary Robin Lipson visited the Plymouth Center for Active Living to discuss […]
Category: state legislation
Download Testimony in Support of Bills at Health Care Financing (pdf) Dignity Alliance Massachusetts appreciates the opportunity to provide testimony on several matters scheduled for public hearing on May 12, 2025. More than one million residents of Massachusetts are over age 65, or about 18.47% of the population (55.6% are women). That percentage is expected […]
Download Testimony in Support of Bills at Aging and Independence Committee (pdf) “There’s no place like home. There’s no place like home. There’s no place like home.” If you’re old enough to remember watching the Wizard of Oz when it was only on television once a year, you remember that line. An overwhelming majority of older adults […]
February 25, 2025 Legislators and aids, advocates and DignityMA members attended an overview of the Dignity Dozen + 1 bills. The education on the bills was to encourage legislators to sign onto the bills. The latest news and information on the bills is on our Advocacy -> State Legislative Endorsements page. Download the list of […]
August 2025 – DignityMA has added a new advocacy toolkit, and the Consumer Voice has added facts and a podcast. Scroll down to PNA Resources. July 1, 2025: Hearing on the PNA The Joint Legislative Committee on Health Care Financing held a hearing at the State House on legislation to raise the Personal Needs Allowance […]
Statement of Senator Patricia Jehlen, Co-Chair, Joint Committee on Elder Affairs, regarding the passage of H 5033, the long-term care reform bill. This statement was made during the Senate session held on August 29, 2024. Sen. Jehlen of Somerville was recognized to speak remotely. Around a minute of silence passed before her voice came over […]
Governor Signs Long Term Care Legislation On September 26, Governor Maura Healey ceremonially signed milestone legislation reforming the long-term care sector in Massachusetts. On September 6, she officially signed into law H 5033, An Act to improve quality and oversight of long-term care, as Chapter 197 of the Acts of 2024. DignityMA released statement: Milestone […]
*The Provincetown IndependentBy Jack Styler, August 7, 2024Despite latest failure, 3 lawmakers say long-term care legislation is not dead Massachusetts politicians at both the state and federal level have made recent moves toward tightening regulation of the long-term care industry, especially as private-equity firms continue to buy up nursing homes across the country. On Beacon […]
January 9, 2025: Governor Healey Officially Renames Executive Office of Elder Affairs to “Executive Office of Aging & Independence” “Renaming the agency reduces negative images around aging, normalizes aging as a natural process, and recognizes that older adults value independence and self-determination, while emphasizing that the Healey-Driscoll Administration is here to support residents as they […]
The Healey-Driscoll Administration filed legislation Senate Bill 2797 to rename the Executive Office of Elder Affairs to the Executive Office of Aging & Independence to better represent and reflect the values of older adults in Massachusetts. Hearing on Legislation, June 26, 2024 The Statehouse News reported on the hearing: Mixed Review For Elder Affairs Name […]