News

Alzheimer’s Association: National State Assessment on Dementia Policies – Response on Nursing Facility Care

Download the DignityMA Response on Nursing Facility Care (pdf) to the Alzheimer's Association National State Assessment on Dementia Policies, as submitted 9/30/22 The Alzheimer's Association is assessing dementia policies nationally and DignityMA provided the attached report. The following questions are answered by Dignity Alliance MA in the response document.
  1. Are ...

Consolidation of senior care homes is uprooting hundreds across Massachusetts

Article by Robert Weisman, Globe Staff, October 9, 2022 Dignity Alliance MA member, Paul Lanzikos, is quoted in the article. Hundreds of older folks, many with disabilities, are being uprooted from long-term care homes across Massachusetts this fall in the wake of a brutal pandemic that claimed the lives of ...

I-Team: Advocates say nursing home crisis could be looming

Report by Cheryl Fiandaca of the CBS Boston I-Team, September 15, 2022 Dignity Alliance MA members, Arlene Germain and Paul Lanzikos, are interviewed in this report. To turn on closed-captions, click on the chat bubble at the bottom. The captions are poor, please contact us if you need more information ...

Birthday cards about aging: the joke lands with some, not others

This persistent ageism is no laughing matter Response to Globe article by Margaret Morganroth Gullette, Dignity Alliance MA member. September 28, 2022. Re “To them, the punchline is just plain old mean” by Robert Weisman (Page A1, Sept. 27): When older adults, men and women alike, find themselves the butt ...

Masking in Facilities

‘A hostile act’: CDC eases masking rules for hospitals and nursing homes, but they won’t apply to Mass. yet The revised guidelines immediately sparked controversy among public health experts. By Felice J. Freyer Globe Staff,Updated September 27, 2022, 8:56 a.m. (FYI: Dignity MA founder, Paul Lanzikos, is quoted below.) New ...

COVID-19 Day of Remembrance

Plans to create day of remembrance for COVID-19 victims are languishing State and federal proposals for commemorations remain bottled up amid partisan divide. By Robert Weisman Globe Staff,Updated September 27, 2022, 8:47 p.m. (FYI: Dignity Alliance MA members, Senator Dick Moore and Paul Lanzikos and Arlene Germain are all quoted ...

Ageism in Birthday Cards

Take a look at the birthday cards ageism advocates say are mean and stereotypical A national campaign presses card makers to reframe a common message. By Robert Weisman Boston Globe Staff, Updated September 21, 2022, 6:57 a.m. (FYI: Paul Lanzikos is quoted. Scroll to the bottom) They’ve been a popular ...

DignityMA Supports Veto Override to Preserve Special Needs Trusts for Seniors

9/13/22 Dignity Alliance Massachusetts strongly urges the Senate and House of Representatives to override the Governor’s poorly reasoned veto of House Bill 4792 – An Act to Preserve Special Needs Trusts for Disabled Seniors. (See House 5188 for veto message.) As a statewide coalition of individuals and organizations advocating for ...

DignityMA Supports Minimum Staffing Standard

6/10/22 DignityMA response to CMS Request for Information (RFI) to support National Minimum Staffing Standard. Inadequate staffing is the primary driver of poor health outcomes in nursing homes, and CMS has promised to propose a minimum staffing standard within one year.  The RFI follows the Biden Administration’s February 28, 2022 ...

100 Issues – Dignity Digest Milestone

We asked our readers three questions about the notion of dignity and their involvement with Dignity Alliance.
What does “dignity” mean to me? Jerry Halberstadt, Stop Bullying Coalition: Treating all humans with respect and decency Dignity is the ability to make your own choices and determine the course of your ...

Lieutenant Governor – Written Responses and Video Interviews

Written Responses Through the Dignity Votes 2022 initiative, Dignity Alliance Massachusetts has invited candidates for constitutional office to respond to a set of questions drafted specifically for each office. The responses of the Lieutenant Governor are below. Video Interviews To view closed captions, click on the "cc" and select English ...

Attorney General – Written Responses

Written Responses Through the Dignity Votes 2022 initiative, Dignity Alliance Massachusetts has invited candidates for constitutional office to respond to a set of questions drafted specifically for each office. The responses of the Attorney General Candidates are below ...

The Legislature’s Missed Opportunity – Failure to Reform Nursing Homes in Massachusetts

August 4, 2022 Much has been written about the legalization of Sports Betting in the Commonwealth. The introduction of this much-debated and formerly illegal past-time is a tribute to the power of the gambling ...

Support An Act relative to supported decision-making agreements for certain adults with disabilities (S.2848, H.4725)

Dignity Digest Spotlight on July 8, 2022 Take Action Dignity Alliance Massachusetts has endorsed An Act relative to supported decision-making agreements for certain adults with disabilities (S.2848, H.4725) Help pass S.2848 / H.4725 into law! Contact Senate President Karen Spilka [(617) 722-1500 /  Karen.Spilka@masenate.gov]  and House Speaker Ronald Mariano [(617) ...

Support An Act expanding wheelchair warranty protections for consumers with disabilities (S.2567)

Dignity Digest Spotlight on July 1, 2022 Take Action Dignity Alliance Massachusetts has endorsed An Act expanding wheelchair warranty protections for consumers with disabilities (S.2567).

Help pass S.2567 into law! See item #2 in the Advocacy section below regarding steps you can take to make your voice heard.

A proposed ...

State Auditor – Written Responses and Video Interviews

Written Responses Through the Dignity Votes 2022 initiative, Dignity Alliance Massachusetts has invited candidates for constitutional office to respond to a set of questions drafted specifically for each office. The responses of the State Auditor Candidates are below. Video Interviews To view closed captions, click on the "cc" and select ...

DignityMA Outreach

Our first outreach table, at the State Democratic Convention on June 4 in Worcester, was a success. The Votes 2022 Committee reached out to the Democrats and Republicans so that we could educate our elected officials. We were very well received, with 47 weekly digest signups, and many more discussions ...

REV UP MA

Dignity Alliance MA voted to endorse and support the upcoming REV UP conference. REV UP Mass (Register! Educate! Vote! Use your Power!) is a local coalition that is part of the larger national REV UP network that exists to build the power of the disability vote. That means making sure ...

National Imperative to Improve Nursing Home Quality

A major, comprehensive report on nursing home care was released on April 6, 2022, by the Committee on the Quality of Care in Nursing Homes under the jurisdiction of the National Academies of Sciences (NASEM), Engineering, and Medicine, The National Imperative to Improve Nursing Home Quality: Honoring Our Commitment to ...

Advocate to Pay to Spouses as Caregivers

S89 / H1305 An Act allowing spouses as caregivers Referred to Joint Committee on Children, Families and Persons with Disabilities. Contact Senator Adam Gomez (Adam.Gomez@masenate.gov, (617) 722-1660) and Representative Michael Finn (Michael.Finn@mahouse.gov, (617) 722-2676) to urge favorable action. Sponsors - Senator Joanne Comerford and Representative Norman Orrall Read the full ...