This page has quotes from the 2025 Dignity Digest issues, beginning in January, ordered by newest first.
For previous quotes, visit:
March 25, 2025
“As all of you know, I’m a drug addict and an alcoholic. Alcohol and drug addiction strike women and men without regard for their sex, and yet our society still attaches a special stigma to the female alcoholic or drug addict.”
Kitty Dukakis, at a 1990 women’s Democratic club meeting, Kitty Dukakis, former first lady of Mass. and mental health advocate, dies at 88, WBUR, March 22, 2025
“You’re seeing the really atrocious impact of private equity, combined with the fact that this is a pretty hidden and tucked away industry. It is very disturbing, especially because people with disabilities already have much worse access to health care.”
Eileen O’Grady, author of the report, Private Equity in Intellectual and Developmental Services, Private equity ‘gobbling’ up care facilities for people with disabilities, STAT News, March 18, 2025
“Courts have repeatedly ruled that choosing a medical provider should be left up to individual patients, not the government. I am proud to lead my colleagues in defending patients’ freedom to receive care from the qualified providers of their choice.”
Attorney General Andrea Cambell, AG Campbell Urges U.S. Supreme Court To Defend Medicaid Recipients’ Freedom To Choose Their Providers, Office of Attorney General Andrea Campbell, March 12, 2025
“We envisioned this law would be an opportunity to seriously confront homophobia among a very elderly population, and that has not proven to be the case.”
Dale Mitchell, founding member of the state’s LGBT Aging Commission, ‘Gen Silent’ and the bumpy road to improve LGBTQ elder care in Massachusetts, *Boston Globe, March 23, 2025
“People don’t think of a 90-year-old grandma as a lesbian, but more people are surviving to an old age. So, it’s really important our long-term care facilities are well prepared to embrace our communities, cause we are coming.”
Miriam Priven, resident chaplain with Hebrew Senior Life, ‘Gen Silent’ and the bumpy road to improve LGBTQ elder care in Massachusetts, *Boston Globe, March 23, 2025
“It’s destabilizing enough to worry about the economics of an insurance plan that you come to rely on, but you certainly don’t want to have to change your doctor, don’t want to have to change your psychiatrist, don’t want to have to change your physical therapist. We want to be very sure that we can, wherever possible, ensure continuity to the providers that have been caring for you and maintaining your independence and dignity and resilience over the last 10 years.”
Kate Walsh, Secretary of Health and Human Services, State prepares in case of collapse of Commonwealth Care Alliance, insurer for 50,000 poor, elderly, and disabled people, *Boston Globe, March 19, 2025
“[Changes to provider taxes] will be a hole in the state’s Medicaid budget. And the question is, are you prepared to fill it? We already have an access-to-care crisis across the state. I think you could expect to see more nursing homes take beds off line, more nursing homes close their doors to new potential residents. And I think you’ll see more bankruptcies, more changes of ownership and, ultimately, more closures.”
Pennsylvania Health Care Association President and CEO Zach Shamberg, Nursing homes fear states will be unable to fill Medicaid ‘hole’ without provider taxes, McKnight Long-Term Care News, March 24, 202
March 18, 2025
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) data indicate that most health violations (more than 95%) are cited as causing “no harm” to residents. The failure to recognize resident pain, suffering, and humiliation when it occurs too often means nursing homes are not held accountable for violations through financial penalties. In the absence of a financial penalty, nursing homes may have little incentive to correct the underlying causes of resident abuse, neglect, and other forms of harm.
The Troubling Truth Behind ‘Average’ Nursing Home Care: Elder Justice “No Harm” Newsletter, Long-Term Care Community Coalition
”He is fearful that moving that far away will result in a change in doctors & disruption in his cancer treatments. He feels this move would be traumatizing to him at this time.”
Barbara Sours, sister of a Highview of Northampton resident who was transferred to a facility more than 75 miles distant upon the closure of Highview, WMass advocates feared a nursing home closing would force long travel. They were right, *MassLive.com, March 12, 2025
Our society tends to push us to deny the passage of time, insisting that renewal is possible if we just want it enough. Ageism has been termed the most invisible form of discrimination and is often met with little cultural or social resistance. This may be because of the accelerated pace of modern living and a collective desire to deny the fact that time will eventually affect everyone.
Christopher W.T. Miller, MD, Changes that come with aging can be hard to accept. These 3 tips can help. *Washington Post, March 9, 2025
Medicaid is the single-largest health insurance program in the United States, covering nearly 1 in 5 Americans and providing access to essential services for low-income individuals, pregnant women, seniors, and people with disabilities. The public program also pays for more than 4 in 10 births nationwide and is the largest funder of long-term care for disabled and older Americans.
Medicaid Block Grants and Per Capita Caps Jeopardize State Budgets, Health Care Access, and Public Health, Center for American Progress, January 28, 2025
“We’re talking about the misappropriation of federal and state dollars. . , For instance, if one flies abroad and flies first class and buys two seats because they don’t want someone sitting next to them. When you have a person who is getting vacation pay for hours more than what the contract had,”
Joseph D. Feaster, Jr., Esq., court-appointed Receiver for the Edgar. P. Benjamin Healthcare Center, Nursing home funds used on designer suits, lingerie, spa service, complaint alleges, Boston 25 News, March 6, 2025
Blueberry Hill has been tagged with a red abuse icon on the federal Nursing Home Compare website.
Inspectors in November issued 31 health citations, three times the average number of citations issued to Massachusetts nursing homes.
Among the many problems were a shortage of nursing staff to meet the needs of every resident. Even some of the nurses who were on duty lacked the “skills sets necessary for the care and treatment of residents,” the report said.
Blueberry Hill nursing home cited for abuse after two deaths, The Beverly Beat, March 6, 2025
“I tell you; I feel like the lowest thing on the face of the earth when I can’t buy a simple $10 birthday gift for my grandkids. I can’t go to the store and get energy drinks. I haven’t had one of those in three or four months. Fifty dollars just doesn’t do anything … How about a magazine? I can’t afford that.”
A senior who identified himself as Greg, Iowa lawmakers asked again to raise monthly allowance of nursing home residents, Iowa Capital Dispatch, March 10, 2025 (updated)
Following Nashoba’s closure, other hospitals in the area are experiencing higher patient volumes and longer wait times. Emergency responders are also grappling with longer trips, with the average median transport time rising from 12 to 17 minutes after Nashoba shuttered on Aug. 31.
Issues linger six months after Nashoba Valley hospital closure, *State House News, March 12, 2025
“We need to make sure that housing is affordable and that it actually meets the needs of residents who are here in our city trying to do everything right and just need that extra little foot in the door to be able to live their fullest lives and contribute to our communities.”
Boston Mayor Michelle Wu, The Lyndia attracts new residents, and Boston mayoral candidates, *State House News, March 12, 2025
The Disability Law Center, a nonprofit designated as the state’s protection and advocacy agency, warned last spring that the involuntarily-held population at Bridgewater State Hospital deals with poor conditions and in some cases “substandard care,” pointing to mold contamination, difficulty accessing treatments and allegedly unlawful ways of restraining patients.
Healey noncommittal on shifting psychiatric hospital out of corrections, *State House News, March 12, 2025
“[The Exhibition Celebrating Women Veterans] is more than homage to the women veterans – it’s a celebration of the women who have served our country with bravery and honor.”
Lieutenant Governor Kim Driscoll, Governor Healey Unveils Exhibition Celebrating Women Veterans and Legacy of Former Congresswoman Edith Nourse Rogers, Office of Governor Maura Healey and Lt. Governor Kim Driscoll, March 12, 2025
“Today’s Catalyst Fund awards will help compliant cities and towns invest in critical infrastructure improvements and land acquisitions to support the development of even more new units and lower costs.”
Lt. Governor Kim Driscoll, Office of Governor Maura Healey and Lt. Governor Kim Driscoll, March 13, 2025, Healey-Driscoll Administration Awards $8.7 Million to Compliant MBTA Communities in Support of New Housing
“COVID was not terrorism, but it brought terror, and we’re still feeling that terror, if we’re honest with ourselves. Some of the byproduct of some of the mental health issues we’re facing is attached to COVID-19.
New York City Mayor Eric Adams at a ceremony at NYC Health + Hospitals/Elmhurst in Queens, which was an epicenter of pandemic response, A pause in NYC to recall pandemic’s impact, 5 years later, Newsday, March 14, 2025
The report, The Gap: A Shortage of Affordable Homes, finds that the lowest-income renters in the U.S. face a shortage of 7.1 million affordable and available rental homes. Three-quarters of renters with extremely low incomes are severely housing cost-burdened, spending more than half of their income on rent. . . Just 35 affordable and available homes exist for every 100 renter households with extremely low incomes.
The Gap: A Shortage of Affordable Homes, National Low Income Housing Coalition, March 13, 2025
“Patients are often in the hospital much longer than they would be because [of lack of decision-making support]. “ICU care and end-of-life care is prolonged. And then when a patient does survive, they can’t get placed in a facility without having someone just basically sign them in.” Instead, patients often end up in limbo in the hospital, with nowhere to go.
Dr. David Oxman, an Intensive care physician, Patients without family or health care proxies face overtreatment or limbo in hospitals, WHYY, February 24, 2025
Last month CMS announced that funds for the Affordable Care Act Navigator Program would be slashed from $98 million in 2024 to $10 million. This means that the pay for people performing the function of helping consumers choose an ACA plan is being cut, as is likely their navigator jobs.
CMS cutting four Medicare payment models, Healthcare Finance, March 13, 2025
The people whose disposability is on widest display are those who work in immediate-risk industries.
Coronavirus and the Politics of Disposability, Boston Review, April 20, 2020
March 11, 2025
“As people age, affordable and independent living isn’t just a preference—it’s essential for their wellbeing. Most older adults want to stay in their homes, yet rising housing costs and limited options create serious barriers. To meet this growing need, leaders at all levels and sectors must prioritize affordable, safe, and accessible housing and communities.”
Rodney Harrell, PhD, AARP Vice President of Family, Home, and Community, Majority of Adults 50-plus Want to Age in Place, But Policies and Communities Must Catch Up, AARP Press Room, December 10, 2024
A greater number of older adults are aging solo, without an adult child or spouse to rely on if they are in need of care. . . [S]olo agers may prolong their ability to live independently by staying physically active and maintaining their health, being engaged in social and community activities, and making home modifications that increase the comfort and safety of their living spaces.
Solo Agers: A Growing Demographic, Senior Living News, February 4, 2025
Older households with very low incomes will almost certainly become more common, given that income inequality is growing and the baby boomers are aging into a cohort that has fixed and falling incomes. Consequently, demand will increase for housing that is both affordable and able to accommodate older adults’ changing health and care need.
Housing America’s Older Adults 2023, Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University
Many households with moderate incomes will also face the challenge of affording both housing and LTC services, particularly renters and homeowners with housing debt. Innovations in the housing and care sectors are a start, but there is tremendous need for creative alternatives to existing models.
Housing America’s Older Adults 2023, Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University
“The closing of [Sheriden Woods Health Care Center] has far reaching negative consequences for the residents, the workers, and those family members that will have to travel outside of Bristol to visit their loved ones in their home.”
Bristol, CT Mayor Jeff Caggiano, State urged to keep Sheriden Woods open, let residents stay near families, *The Bristol Press, March 4, 2025
“I was crying so hard that I could barely talk to thank him.”
Toni Cavanaugh, whose daughter, who is mostly nonverbal and has Down syndrome, visits the video rental store three days a week, Store owner relocates his shop for his best customer, a woman with Down syndrome, *Washington Post, March 6, 2025
March 4, 2025
As alleged, these defendants drained Medicare and Medicaid of millions of dollars and put vulnerable patients at risk – making them undergo unnecessary, and sometimes painful, services. When facilities prioritize profits over patient well-being, they endanger those in their care and undermine the integrity of our healthcare system. This office will continue to hold accountable those who exploit federal healthcare programs at the expense of patients and taxpayers alike.”
United States Attorney Leah B. Foley, United States Sues Skilled Nursing Company, Executives and Consultant for Fraudulent Billing, United States Attorney’s Office District of Massachusetts, February 25, 2025
In response to new federal mandates that prohibit any mention or implementation of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives, SeniorCare has made the difficult but necessary decision to end our 24-year partnership with the AmeriCorps Seniors program, effective February 27, 2025. These restrictions are fundamentally incompatible with SeniorCare’s core values as an organization. SeniorCare has always been, and remains, unwavering in our commitment to inclusivity and non-discrimination. We do not, have not, and will not discriminate against anyone under any circumstances.
A Message from SeniorCare CEO, SeniorCare, February 28, 2025
And so, eventually, there was a last straw. And that last straw came at a venue in Boston, a well-respected folk venue that’s in the basement. And I was excited to play there, but I felt gross that it wasn’t accessible, but I was like, well, I’m just starting out my career. Someday maybe I’ll be able to just play accessible places. So, I did the show. At that particular show, a fan of mine had supported a Kickstarter, donated a lot of money to help me make my last album, his prize was to get to have dinner with me before the show at this venue. He also, as a bonus prize, got to lift my chair down an entire flight of stairs and then back up to get it out. And it was… that day I was like this, it is dangerous for him, it’s dangerous for my chair, it’s dangerous for me and it also just is a bad example of advocacy. So, I’m like I’m done playing inaccessible venues. And on top of it, I’m done getting lifted up onto the stage. If a venue doesn’t have a ramp, I’m playing on the floor from now on. Because if things haven’t changed in 30 years, which is how long the Americans with Disabilities Act has been around… I mean, think about that, right?
Gaelynn Lea, Accessibility is the New Punk Rock, Moth Radio Hour, March 2, 2025
Medicaid provides health insurance and long-term care to roughly one in every five people living in the U.S and accounts for nearly $1 out of every $5 spent on health care. . . States and the federal government jointly fund the program.
Medicaid cuts could leave millions uninsured, *Salem News, March 3, 2025
[KFF, a nonprofit independent organization focused on health policy,] estimates Massachusetts could lose anywhere between $11.6 billion and $23.2 billion in Medicaid funds over the next decade under various scenarios being considered for cutting spending, including per-capita caps on funding.
Medicaid cuts could leave millions uninsured, *Salem News, March 3, 2025
[A]geism causes “indifference and aversion,” where “the old can be seen as unproductive, a burden,” and “costly,” a perception that is “lethal” to the community.
Margaret Morganroth Gullette, a DignityMA participant and author of “American Eldercide,”, What is Dignity Dozen + One? Elder care advocates explain agenda to Mass. legislators, Milford Daily News, March 3, 2025
“The clinical practices, the business practices, the public policy [regarding nursing homes], have not essentially changed in 50 years, in fact in some ways, more than 75 years.”
Paul Lanzikos, co-founder of the Dignity Alliance, Dignity Alliance calls for legislative action for elderly and disabled population, WWLP.com, February 25, 2025
The primary care workforce in Massachusetts is aging with a third of primary care physicians over 60 years old and heading toward retirement. But others are also eyeing the exits.
Treating the ‘dire diagnosis’ of Massachusetts’ primary care crisis, CommonWealth Beacon, February 28, 2025
“Right now, the literature is very focused on, ‘Can you survive in extreme heat without medical intervention?’” This study, in contrast, suggests that even if [older] people aren’t at immediate risk of health crises or death because of the heat, “there may still be an effect.”
Jennifer Ailshire, a professor of gerontology and sociology at the U.S.C. Leonard Davis School of Gerontology, Extreme Heat Linked to Accelerated Aging in Older Adults, Study Finds(*New York Times, February 26, 2025)
“[Nursing facilities] did increase patient census soon after changing ownership but did not keep up with staffing in order to maintain the same nurse-patient ratios as census increased.”
Rachel Prusynski, assistant professor in the Department of Rehabilitation Medicine at the University of Washington, Nursing home sales lead to more patients, less direct care staff, McKnights Long Term Care, March 3, 2025
SNF ownership changes were associated with declines in overall patient care staffing, driven by nurse staffing declines. As nurse occupations comprise more than 80% of staff time in SNFs, results support concerns that SNF ownership changes may negatively impact staffing operations.
Impacts of Skilled Nursing Facility Change of Ownership on Staffing: A Staggered Difference-in-Difference Analysis, JAMDA, February 27, 2025
[T]he prevalence of opioid use disorder is rising rapidly among Medicare beneficiaries 65 and older. Older Americans are also experiencing the social impacts of opioid addiction: An estimated 2.6 million grandparents are helping to raise the children of parents who are unable to care for them because of substance use.
Addressing the Opioid Crisis Among Older Americans, RAND, February 28, 2025
February 25, 2025
Age has its privileges.
The Next Hot Playwright? They Prefer the Ones Who Cooled Off.(*New York Times, February 10, 2025)
[Bundling payments] was an example of how CMS staff has defended a process “over the best interests of patients and providers.”
Dialysis payment change snags nursing home patients, creates compliance risks, McKnights Long-Tem Care News, February 17, 2025
Medicare can cover most of your health care needs when you turn 65, but it doesn’t pay for everything. And one of the most significant financial challenges to watch out for are the out-of-pocket costs you can face aside from monthly premiums — including deductibles and other types of cost sharing.
Just how much you’ll pay, and when, depends on the type of Medicare enrollment that you choose: traditional Medicare, which is operated by the government and provides care on a fee-for-service basis, or Medicare Advantage, which is run by private insurance companies and operates on a managed care model.
Bridging the Medicare Cost Gap: Knowing Your Options, *New York Times, February 15, 2025
In her emotional interview on “The Breakfast Club,” Ms. [Wendy] Williams likened her living conditions to those of a prison, describing a simple daily routine that includes three meals in her bed. “I watch TV, I listen to radio, I look at the window, I talk on the phone,” Ms. Williams said. She said she did not have access to a laptop or an iPad, and suggested that her phone capabilities were limited.
What to Know About Wendy Williams’s Guardianship, *New York Times, February 6, 2025
The decision to make these medications more affordable for large swaths of patients has quietly created another problem: a severe financial hit to the clinics that are tasked by the federal government with caring for the country’s poorest people. . . “It’s the law of unintended consequences,” said Beth Powell, the director of pharmacy at The Centers, which operates five community health clinics in the Cleveland area.
Insulin Prices Dropped. But Some Poor Patients Are Paying More., *New York Times, January 16, 2025
“Unfortunately, the complexities of the U.S. health care system can reduce access and affordability for many. Even when we lower our prices, too often people don’t receive the savings — this is a problem.”
Jamie Bennett, spokeswoman for Novo Nordisk, Insulin Prices Dropped. But Some Poor Patients Are Paying More., *New York Times, January 16, 2025
“We need our oversight agencies to pay more attention. The licensing agencies should bring in forensic accountants to look at the books. There should be better auditing.”
Lori Smetanka, Executive Director, The National Consumer Voice, referring to state regulators and to the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, When the Retirement Community Goes Bankrupt, New York Times (free access), January 18, 2025
“U.S. House Republicans’ proposal to gut Medicaid funding would rip away health care from newborns, pregnant women, children and adults with disabilities, seniors and more. Nearly 2 million Massachusetts residents rely on MassHealth for their health care coverage — including nearly half of the children in this state. Providers would be forced to shut their doors or lay off staff. U.S. House Republicans need to back away from this proposal and preserve Medicaid funding.”
Governor Maura Healey, GOP Eyes Cuts To Growing Medicaid Program, State House News, February 19, 2025
The Affordable Care Act’s navigator program helps people with enrollment into marketplace plans, as well as “connect people to Medicaid/CHIP, help them understand how to use their coverage and assist with other problems” as noted by Inside Health Policy. On February 14, the Trump Administration cut funding for this vital program by 90%. As noted in a statement from Community Catalyst, “slashing resources for the trusted, community-based, unbiased experts who help people enroll in affordable health coverage […] will create unnecessary barriers to care, particularly for communities facing systemic inequities in health care access.”
Threats to Medicare, Medicaid and Other Health Programs Increasing, Center for Medicare Advocacy, February 20, 2025
“For people with disabilities, housing options have been limited to either segregated buildings — where it’s all disabled people — or sometimes mixed in with seniors.”
Micaela Connery, San Francisco housing developer, New Project Showcases ‘Disability-Forward’ Housing, Disability Scoop, January 7, 2025
About 26% of people in the United States have a disability — including mobility, cognition, hearing and vision — but less than 6% of housing is accessible to people with mobility or sensory disabilities.
New Project Showcases ‘Disability-Forward’ Housing, Disability Scoop, January 7, 2025
February 18, 2025
Massachusetts doesn’t have a budget problem — it has a priority problem.
Editorial: Healey has to hit the brakes on seniors’ program plan,*Boston Herald, February 12, 2025
Medicaid is vital to the wellbeing of people with disabilities, older adults and their caregivers. More than half of Medicaid spending is on services for disabled people and older adults. More than one in three disabled people have Medicaid, and a majority of older adults on Medicaid have disabilities. Medicaid is the primary payor for LTSS for disabled people and older adults who need home and community-based services and nursing home care, and it helps support family caregivers of disabled people and older adults.
But because of the optional nature of eligibility pathways and of home and community based services, there are already more than 700,000 people on waiting lists.
What Lies Ahead For Medicaid In Budget Reconciliation?, Health Affairs, February 11, 2025
“There is simply no way to protect any beneficiary from the impact of far-reaching Medicaid spending reductions. Medicaid is perhaps the nation’s most complex federal health care program, and each element of the program is inextricably connected to the other. Taking unprecedented sums out of Medicaid would hurt everyone. Period.”
What Lies Ahead For Medicaid In Budget Reconciliation?, Health Affairs, February 11, 2025
“Don’t open another bed until the people that are working there have the proper training to care for them and that we have a system that looks at frail people and how we keep them in the best place to manage them, instead of just saying, ‘OK, you’ve got dementia and you wandered yesterday so now you got to go into a protective care unit’, and they don’t even need it.”
Dr. Rober Butler, a physician in St. Johns, New Brunswick, Canada, who specializes in dementia, ‘Don’t open another bed’: St. John’s doctor says there’s a better way to keep seniors out of long-term care, The Telegram, February 10, 2025
“We need a lot more transparency at ownership levels and where the money is actually going. And we need pretty strict guidelines on how that money can be spent.”
Barb Bowers, a professor emerita at the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s School of Nursing, Wisconsin, rarely blocks nursing home sales, but it can, The Cap Times, February 13, 2025
“There’s just no effort by the government to try to beef up the public-sector nursing homes and the nonprofits and I really think the COVID crisis showed us that ownership makes a huge difference. I’m not saying that all nonprofits and all county nursing homes are good, but in general, they’re much better than the for-profits.”
Charlene Harrington, professor emeritus at the University of California-San Francisco, Wisconsin, rarely blocks nursing home sales, but it can, The Cap Times, February 13, 2025
5 per cent of the beds in hospitals are occupied by frail people and most long-term care referrals come through hospitals.
“So, if our hospitals are being inundated with frail elderly people, doesn’t it make sense that you would look at those frail populations and try to make them less frail? And do that before they get into the hospital,”
Dr. Rober Butler, a physician in St. Johns, New Brunswick, Canada, who specializes in dementia, ‘Don’t open another bed’: St. John’s doctor says there’s a better way to keep seniors out of long-term care, The Telegram, February 10, 2025
“People often assume that caregiving has to be separated from the romantic part of our lives, so they’ll be like, ‘How do you draw the line between being a caregiver and being a wife?’ It’s definitely embedded in the romantic love. Caregiving is very seamlessly integrated into our day. There’s no line that we draw.”
Hannah Aylward, The Remarkable Normalcy of Being Disabled and in Love, *New York Times, January 16, 2025
“I just want to say that having [former President Jimmy Carter’s] words captured in this way, for my family and for the world, is truly remarkable, and I think really means so much at this moment in our history as a country, as a world, to bring people together, to preach that love and kindness.”
Jason Carter, grandson of Jimmy Carter, Jimmy Carter Wins Posthumous Grammy Award, Kirkus Reviews, February 3, 2025
“Again and again, we are seeing owners and operators of Medicaid-funded nursing homes in New Jersey engaging in massive fraud. That’s causing real harm to the vulnerable residents who rely on Medicaid. The fraud is also wasting taxpayer dollars. This is a systemic problem, and it needs to be treated as one.”
Acting State Comptroller Kevin Walsh, Owners of Four New Jersey Skilled Nursing Facilities to be Suspended from New Jersey Medicaid, Office of the New Jersey State Comptroller, February 10, 2025
“Over the past few weeks, we’ve raised our estimated severity level from high to very high, as we are getting reports of an increase in cases in our state. In the past week, we’ve reached a peak of influenza-like illness reporting that is higher than we’ve seen in any of the prior five flu seasons.” . . . Only 38% of Massachusetts residents have gotten their flu shot, according to state data.
Public Health Commissioner Robert Goldstein, Current Mass. Flu Peak Highest In Recent Years, *State House News, February 12, 2025
“[ Robert F. Kennedy Jr.] demonstrated a shocking lack of knowledge about the federal health programs he’ll be charged with running, and a willful desire to mislead senators about his views on science matters like vaccine safety.”
Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Robert F. Kennedy Jr. confirmed by Senate as U.S. health secretary, STAT News, February 13, 2025
“High housing costs are one of the biggest challenges facing Massachusetts residents.”
Governor Maura Healey, Healey, Office of Governor Maura Healey and Lt. Governor Kim Driscoll, Healey-Driscoll Administration Announces $158 Million for New Affordable Housing Developments Across the State, February 13, 2025
“No one who has served our country should ever struggle to pay for everyday necessities like housing, groceries or medical care, including mental health care.”
Lieutenant Governor Kim Driscoll, Healey-Driscoll Administration Launches New Tool to Assist Veterans with Financial Benefits, Office of Governor Maura Healey and Lt. Governor Kim Driscoll, February 14, 2025
American nursing homes are in crisis, with residents facing systemic neglect and unnecessary suffering. By digging through the complex matrix of regulatory authority generated in part by the federalism that characterizes this country’s approach to public health, we have shown that state and federal governments already have much of what it takes to fix America’s nursing homes. At the federal level, regulators can deny certification to facilities whose owners and operators have shown that they cannot be depended upon to provide safe and humane care to residents, and loan guarantee programs can be targeted to encourage the type of smaller facilities associated with better care, instead of discouraging them. At the state level, states can use their existing licensure schemes to ensure that states do not grant licenses to facilities or individuals who are unlikely to provide care that meets minimum standards. And at both levels, stronger financial penalties can be imposed on facilities that put residents at risk. Together, these existing statutory and regulatory authorities could be used to create much stronger incentives for nursing homes to provide high-quality care.
Using What We Have: How Existing Legal Authorities Can Help Fix America’s Nursing Home CrisisWilliam & Mary Law Review, October 2023
[A]bout 35% of seniors who could afford senior housing opt not to use it. They prefer to age at home closer to friends and family, something that is being made increasingly possible by advances in design and technology.
Aging Boomers Are About to Rekindle the Senior-Housing Market,*Wall Street Journal, February 11, 2025
The oldest boomers turn 80 in less than a year. And by 2030, the U.S. population 80 years and older is expected to increase by more than four million people to 18.8 million. History suggests that a growing number of people conclude at that milestone age they can no longer live comfortably or safely at home and seek a senior facility.
Many will find themselves on a wait list. Development of senior housing nearly ground to a halt during the pandemic hasn’t picked up much.
The sector is expected to move from its former glut to a shortage in the next five years. More than 560,000 new units are needed to meet all the demand by 2030, but only 191,000 will be added at current development rates.
Aging Boomers Are About to Rekindle the Senior-Housing Market,*Wall Street Journal, February 11, 2025
“Disabled people deserve all the same things that everybody else gets to do.”
Boston Volt hockey coach Laura Calderon, Boston Volt Hockey players removed from flight in Denmark because of wheelchairs, WBZ News, February 13, 2025
“Being disabled in a non-disabled world, the amount of ableism you face on a day-to-day basis is mind boggling at times.”
Desi Forte, Boston Volt hockey player who uses a wheelchair, Boston Volt Hockey players removed from flight in Denmark because of wheelchairs, WBZ News, February 13, 2025
While the use of antiviral drugs and monoclonal antibodies were tied to reduced hospitalizations and deaths, these treatments were underused. “Only an estimated 30% of infected residents received this treatment by 2021, when theoretically close to 100% of COVID-19 cases could have benefitted from treatment,” the researchers noted. “By March 2023, only approximately 35% of resident COVID-19 cases were treated with antivirals.”
Nursing homes used unproven COVID measures and didn’t use vaccines, antivirals enough, review finds, CIDRAP, February 4, 2025
Over the past 2 weeks, flu deaths have outpaced fatalities from COVID and now make up 2.6% of all deaths for the most recent week, compared to 1.5% for COVID.
US flu reaches high severity status as deaths outpace COVID, CIDRAP, February 14, 2025
Compared with controls, long-COVID patients had statistically significant increases in COVID-19 diagnoses, malaise and fatigue, sleep/wake conditions, and respiratory symptoms but significantly lower rates of pneumonia, fluid and electrolyte conditions, and respiratory failure.
Long-COVID diagnosis may prompt patients to switch from acute to outpatient care, CIDRAP, February 14, 2025
The median retirement savings of boomers is only $202,000, and more than 40% of 55-to-64 year olds have no retirement savings at all, according to the Federal Reserve Board.
Seven trends in senior living that will define 2025 and beyond, McKnights Senior Living, January 6, 2025
“There’s office parks that have a tremendous amount of land and low density, and you’ve got all these empty parking fields,” [BXP’s chief Boston-area executive] Bryan J. Koop said. “We absolutely see the opportunity [for conversion to residential housing].”
Much of Greater Boston’s suburban office stock is considered functionally obsolete — not in demand by tenants, too dated to warrant meaningful investment in modernizing. For many suburban offices, tenants that have been in place for decades have either downsized or left entirely. Some 23 percent of office space was available to lease at the end of the year.
The next frontier for housing: Suburban office parks, *Boston Globe, February 14, 2025
February 11, 2025
For anyone who lives in a nursing home, the adequacy of the nursing staff is a life-or-death issue. That’s why the Biden administration issued federal rules last year setting minimum standards for staffing. By our estimate, . . . [a]chieving the minimum staffing levels would save the lives of about 13,000 people per year in U.S. nursing homes, about the same number killed in drunken driving accidents. . . The truth is nursing homes can meet these standards. The for-profit nursing home industry diverts hundreds of millions in profits to executives and shareholders — money that could be redirected toward hiring more nurses.
Your Parents Deserve More From Their Nursing Home, New York Times, February 7, 2025
“When you realize that you have a person with a disability, you have an opportunity, not a problem.’’
Venu Varanasi, a biomaterials engineer at the University of Texas at Arlington who has low vision, How scientists with disabilities are making research labs and fieldwork more accessible,*Boston Globe, January 19, 2025
“Hello? Where are you at?” the deputies shouted into the distance as they turned the corner and saw the 100-year-old woman approaching them with her walker.
“I’ve been trying to find a way out,” the woman told the deputies.
“Let’s get you out of here,” the deputy responded.
“Where do I go? Don’t lose me,” she said.”I promise I won’t,” said the deputy. “No, we won’t lose you. Don’t worry.”
The woman explained that she hadn’t heard the deputies shouting because she is deaf and couldn’t charge her hearing aids.
The deputies were able to get her to safety.
Don’t lose me’: Woman, 100, rescued by deputies as Eaton Fire approached senior living facility, ABC Eyewitness 7 News, January 29, 2025
[E]ight buses were used to transfer almost 200 residents, but the woman, along with another independent living resident, did not make it to the buses. . . we have discovered gaps in our planning and execution that we are working to understand and correct. Like hundreds of agencies and institutions in the Los Angeles area, we were faced with an unprecedented challenge, and our response to it merits a deep, unvarnished review.”
James Rothrockalso, president and CEO, MonteCedro Retirement Community, Altadena, CA, Don’t lose me’: Woman, 100, rescued by deputies as Eaton Fire approached senior living facility, ABC Eyewitness 7 News, January 29, 2025
The pace of sales has ticked up, reaching a high last year, according to Ziegler Investment Banking. Since 2015, 900 not-for-profit nursing homes and senior living communities nationwide have changed hands, with more than half of them acquired by for-profit operators.
For-profit groups own about 72% of the roughly 15,000 nursing homes in the United States, which serve more than 1.3 million residents. While overall for-profit ownership percentage hasn’t notably increased in recent years, the type of for-profit companies that own these facilities has shifted toward private equity, real estate investment trusts, and complicated ownership structures.
For-profit groups have vacuumed up over 70% of America’s nursing homes, and health advocates are worried: ‘The care gets really bad’,*Forbes, March 12, 2024
“I want to urge you to have the optimism that I have, that as we start here today at the beginning of the [legislative] session, we will not only get that bill [SD 1890 / HD 866] out again and move it forward, but we will get it over the finish line this year. And I don’t say that lightly. I promise you all that nothing motivates us and moves policy like your personal stories, like the stories of courage and persistence, the stories that turn pain into purpose.”
Sen. Paul Feeney, Push Continues For Brain Injury Treatment Coverage, *State House News, February 4, 2025
Last year, nearly 6,000 studies of longevity made their way onto PubMed, a database of biomedical and life sciences papers; that’s almost five times as many as two decades ago.
What Have We Learned From Centuries of Chasing Immortality?, New York Times (free access), January 23, 2025 (Updated)
“Few people are prepared for how long retirement will be. We want them to consider what their social portfolio might entail as they age, along with mobility and seeing their home as a service platform with sensors and devices that can help you age in place.” Getting to stay at home forever? Now that’s living the dream.
Joseph Coughlin, director of the MIT AgeLab, How Boston Is Poised to Become the Nation’s Leading Longevity Hub, Boston Magazine, January 17, 2025
“The proposed tariffs, once enacted and implemented, could have an impact downstream on medication costs for pharmacies, patients, [health] plans and [long-term care] facilities.”
Chad Worz, PharmD, chief executive of the American Society of Consultant Pharmacist, Nursing homes face soaring costs without healthcare carveout for new tariffs, McKnights Long-Term Care News, February 4, 2025
Research . . .showed there were fewer than 1,500 SNF beds under construction [nationally] over the past nine quarters.
SNF per-bed pricing jolt enables operators to ‘explore the market’ more, McKnights Long-Term Care News, February 6, 2025
This year’s [Centenarian Celebration] honorees included Mildred Austin, 100 years old; Kalope Jamesson, 100; Nina Andolina, 100; Beatrice Labore, 101; Katie Nau, 102; Doris Remein, 104; Reba Baker, 104; and Evalyn Seaver, 105.
Table for 8, please: Centenarian Celebration features oldest nursing home residents sharing keys to longevity, McKnights Long-Term Care News, February 5, 2025
Brian J. Foley lives the good life. The nursing home chain boss lives in a waterfront Newport mansion.
In Rhode Island, one of Foley’s nursing homes was recently hit with a penalty totaling as much as $500,000 for deficiencies impacting elderly patients, and this is far from the first time this home has been cited. Across his corporation, his nursing homes have been cited for hundreds of violations.
Two Worlds: He Owns Nursing Homes Hit With Fines & Lives in a $14M Mansion in Newport(GoLocalProv, November 18, 2024)
“This housing plan tells us exactly where we need to go and how we can get there to build hundreds of thousands of new units and make sure that everyone – our teachers, nurses, small business owners, seniors and families – can afford homes in our state.”
Governor Maura Healey, Healey-Driscoll Administration Releases State’s First Ever Comprehensive Housing Plan(Office of Governor Maura Healey and Lt. Governor Kim Driscoll, February 6, 2025)
February 4, 2025
“The goal is to try to keep [frail, at risk individuals] out of institutions, living in the community and living healthy in the community, and bring all the support services for them and their families. When I look at that model, it really is a model that we can apply to other frail populations or severely ill populations, where we really create an environment of capitated payment — create an environment where someone can come in and get the care that they need.”
Fallon Health CEO Manny Lopes, Insurers: Mass. Health Care Reaching “Limits of Affordability” , State House News, January 30, 2025
In healthcare and social services, amid an aging population and an increased demand for care, there is a growing need for neutral—or at least quasi-neutral—honest brokers who can build trust and balance the conflicts of competing parties. For the nonprofit sector in particular, this can be key to resolving issues and creating more inclusive, fair, and effective systems through transparent decision-making.
Honest Brokers, Technology, and Health Justice: What Are We Learning?, Nonprofit Quarterly, January 27, 2025
It is imperative that we ensure a robust supply chain of health plans [as Medicaid managed care providers] to avoid the dangers of concentration. If the market continues to develop as it has, the industry may end up with only a handful of managed care plans participating. While these plans may be well-meaning and effective, any prudent purchaser knows that she must keep a robust market alive. The health and well-being of millions of Medicaid consumers relies on it.
Supplier Concentration In Medicaid Managed Care: A Cause For Concern, Health Affairs Forefront, January 29, 2025
Skilled nursing facilities (SNFs) experienced high mortality during the COVID-19 pandemic, leading them to adopt preventive measures to counteract viral spread. A critical appraisal of these measures is essential to support SNFs in managing future infectious disease outbreaks.
Measures to Prevent and Control COVID-19 in Skilled Nursing Facilities, JAMA Network, January 31, 2025
This Standing Order establishes the Office of Adult Guardianship and Conservatorship Oversight (“OAGCO”) in the Administrative Office of the [Massachusetts] Probate and Family Court. The purpose of the OAGCO is to monitor adult guardianships and the filing of conservatorship Accounts pursuant to G. L. c. 190B.
The Office Of Adult Guardianship and Conservatorship Oversight Is Established, Massachusetts Probate and Family Court, February 3, 2025
[Nancy] Roppe,[age 64] a self-described “five foot nothing, crippled little old lady,” fiercely opposes selling Portage County’s [Wisconsin] public nursing home to a private bidder. She’s spent years causing “good trouble” in voicing that opinion to elected board members. Deputies have escorted her out of meetings “more than once,” she said. “If I can throw a monkey wrench in what they’re trying to do, I’m going to exhaust every possible avenue to do that. . . I got a big mouth and I use it.”
Wisconsin residents organize in fight to keep county nursing homes public, Wisconsin Watch, February 3, 2025
“There’s a realization that some of the visitor restrictions and lockdowns [during the Covid-19 pandemic] were maybe more harmful than helpful. There are no studies that suggest those restrictions were really instrumental in keeping cases down in nursing homes.”
‘Missed opportunities’ marred COVID-19 battles in nursing homes, researchers find, McKnights Long-Term Care News, February 3, 2025
Spending on home healthcare has grown by 24.8% over the past 18 months, more than double the growth in personal healthcare spending overall, which grew by 11.4% over the same period, according to Altarum’s monthly Health Sector Economic Indicators brief. . .
Spending on nursing home care was the second fastest-growing among the major healthcare categories. Spending on nursing home care grew by 13.4% over the same time period.
Spending on home healthcare grows twice as fast as total personal healthcare spending over past 18 months, McKnights Senior Living, February 3, 2025
Although the deinstitutionalization project has been imperfect and remains unfinished, today more persons with disabilities receive the services and support they need in communities than ever before. While today’s service delivery systems leave much to be desired, at least in principle they are premised on inclusion, informed choice, and person-centeredness.
Tracing the Origins of Mass Institutionalization of Persons with Disabilities in North America, Harvard Law School Project on Disability (HPOD)
“Government is ultimately a human transaction, and Roosevelt put a cheerful, defiant, caring face on government at a time when faith in democracy was ebbing throughout the Western world.”
John Updike, pushing back against criticism of the New Deal, How America’s ‘Senior Citizens’ Became ‘Older People’ (*New York Times, January 29, 2025 (updated))
January 28, 2025
“It’s insulting when legislators and others decide to devalue us as persons with disabilities. Access is a civil right. It does not have a monetary cost.”
Steve Higgins, executive director of Independence Associates, an independent living center, State accessibility panel weighs conflict between two worthy aims, CommonWealth Beacon, January 23, 2025
[Alzheimer’s] disease afflicts nearly seven million Americans, about one in every nine people over the age of 65, making it a leading cause of death among older adults. Up to 420,000 adults in the prime of life — including people as young as 30 — suffer from early-onset Alzheimer’s. The annual number of new cases of dementia is expected to double by 2050. . . Alzheimer’s families face incalculable emotional costs. In the United States, more than 11 million family members and other unpaid caregivers (such as friends and neighbors) care for fathers and mothers, spouses and grandparents who have fallen prey to dementia. For many this means financial impoverishment. These caregivers in the United States provided the equivalent of nearly $350 billion in care to dementia patients in 2023 — nearly matching the amount paid for dementia care by all other sources, including Medicare.
The Devastating Legacy of Lies in Alzheimer’s Science, New York Times (free access), January 24, 2025
Over the past 25 years, Alzheimer’s research has suffered a litany of ostensible fraud and other misconduct by world-famous researchers and obscure scientists alike, all trying to ascend in a brutally competitive field. . . Collectively, the experts identified nearly 600 dubious papers from the group that have distorted the field — papers having been cited some 80,000 times in the scientific literature. Many of the most respected Alzheimer’s scholars — whose work steers the scientific discourse — repeatedly referred to those tainted studies to support their own ideas. This has compromised the field’s established base of knowledge.
The Devastating Legacy of Lies in Alzheimer’s Science, New York Times (free access), January 24, 2025
While there were some wins, including funding for Chapter 257 workforce rate reserve, [the FY 2026 state] budget has significant areas of concern.
The Arc of Massachusetts Analysis: Governor Healey’s FY26 Budget Proposal, Arc of Massachusetts, January 25, 2025
If the [Trump] administration moves to change Medicaid’s structure and rules, Massachusetts must swiftly act to protect its most vulnerable residents. Advocacy will be critical.
Understanding Medicaid and Proposed Changes, Arc of Massachusetts, January 16, 2025
Steward Health Care has become a poster child for the dangers private equity poses to the nation’s health care system: Patients and employees suffered, hospitals were shuttered, and investors made off with hundreds of millions of dollars. . .This month, a Senate Budget Committee report stated that private equity could “pose a threat to the nation’s health care infrastructure, particularly in underserved and rural areas.”
How to prevent the next Steward Health Care crisis, *Boston Globe, January 23, 2025
It’s widely known that frontline caregivers in the skilled care field are disproportionately immigrants. These dedicated individuals provide essential, hands-on care — feeding residents, changing bed linens, and ensuring daily comfort — all while earning modest wages. They are the glue that keeps many facilities running smoothly. Without them, the quality of care residents rely on could deteriorate, and operators could face even worse staffing shortages.
Where have all the Juanitas gone?, McKnights Long-Term Care News, January 25, 2025
[T]he restrictions imposed during the pandemic, such as visitor bans and the cessation of communal activities, were intended to protect residents but may have led to unintended negative consequences. Research indicated that facilities with active COVID-19 cases saw significant increases in mortality and functional decline among residents, while those without known cases experienced a modest decrease in mortality[4]. This highlights the delicate balance between protecting residents from infection and maintaining their overall health and well-being.
Impact of COVID-19 on Long-Term Care Facilities, Nature Research Intelligence, Undated
January 24, 2025
“Ms. [Nancy M.] McNamara spent 18 and a half hours face down on the floor of her unit before being discovered by staff and the service logs falsely stated that checks had been made. The staff’s negligence meant that Ms. McNamara deteriorated mentally and physically after the fall without medical attention or staff intervention, which ultimately led to her death.”
Attorney David J. Hoey, Lawsuit: Woman died after fall was unnoticed for hours at Shrewsbury assisted living home, *Worcester Telegram & Gazette, January 19, 2025
“Due to the immediate nature of the evacuations, significant challenges occurred for staff and the residents. During the initial evacuation, providers were limited to getting residents immediately out of the building. Activating mutual aid agreements for transfer were not achievable, and as a consequence, many of the residents were evacuated directly to hospitals with no staging areas while waiting to be placed.”
Corey Egel, director of public affairs for the California Association of Health Facilities, ‘Situation Remains Dynamic’: Wildfires Burn Down 2 Nursing Homes as 35 Facilities Evacuated, Skilled Nursing News, January 14, 2025
“Currently, a misalignment in federal regulations results in too many donated organs that are recovered and offered for transplant by organizations such as [New England Donor Services (NEDS)] ultimately going unused by transplant programs for patients waiting.”
NEDS CEO Alexandra Glazier, Organ Donor Group Marks Progress, Seeks Reforms, State House News, January 15, 2025
“People with disabilities in Idaho have the right to choose services to remain independent in their own homes instead of being segregated in institutions. The Justice Department is committed to ensuring that people with disabilities can access the services they need to live at home and be full participants in their communities.”
Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke, Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, Justice Department Finds that Idaho Violates Federal Civil Rights Law by Unnecessarily Segregating People with Physical Disabilities, U.S. Department of Justice, January 15, 2025
“[W]ith regard to nearly every aspect of the final rule [implementing the federal nursing home staffing mandate], the plaintiffs have failed to demonstrate that a preliminary injunction is necessary in order to preserve the status quo and prevent irreparable harm.”
US District Judge Leonard T. Strand, US District Court for Northern Iowa, Judge denies request to halt staffing mandate, McKnights Long-Term Care, January 16, 2025
If long-term care is to have a long-term future, whether it be offered at home or in a facility, we will need more immigrants, as the supply of native-born workers is completely insufficient. Nationally, immigrants account for roughly one-third of the current paid home care workforce, and over one-fifth of all nursing assistants in nursing homes. Immigration can’t be limited to just benefiting tech sector billionaires.
We need to care for our vulnerable elders in nursing homes, Seacoastline, January 16, 2025
“[Placement of prisoners eligible for medical parole in nursing facilities is] more humane, less restrictive and cost-effective. There is no reason for these people to remain in a corrections environment.”
David Skoczulek, iCare vice president of business development, Sick Prisoners in New York Were Granted Parole but Remain Behind Bars, *New York Times, January 17, 2025
A study of merger and acquisition activity among nursing homes found that firms favor lower-quality facilities for acquisition, and do not drive quality improvements in the period after acquisition. A more recent study using patient-level Medicare data finds that private equity (PE) ownership is associated with an 11% increase in mortality in US nursing homes, accompanied by declining measures of patient well-being, nurse staffing, and compliance with care standards. . .
Our analysis reveals that as the quality level of nursing facilities increased, the median number of owners generally decreased.
Beyond Market Concentration: Using Social Network Analysis to Explore Complex Ownership Structures of Nursing Homes, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE),January 10, 2025
Don’t think old; think young. Because that’s what will keep you young. People go around and say, “this hurts, that hurts.” That’s not good. I have aches. I have some pains. But nobody ever hears me talk about them.
A 100-year-old’s advice on how to find meaning at all stages of life *Washington Post, January 21, 2025
January 14, 2025
Everyone deserves to live a full life with dignity. Unfortunately, with healthcare for the elderly and disabled, dignity is often among the first values that are sacrificed. But the good news is that another path is possible. Since 2020, Dignity Alliance Massachusetts (DAM) has emerged as a grassroots coalition dedicated to dignified long-term care.
James Lomastro, PhD, Dignity in Action: From Institutional Failure to Decentralized Empowerment, Nonprofit Quarterly, January 6, 2025
Inadequate Personal Need Accounts (PNAs) compromise the human rights and basic needs of older adults, force them to make tough choices about what personal needs they will have to forego, and highlight underlying ageist attitudes embedded within policy. Addressing the deficiency of PNA should be an element of fulfilling this Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) priority.
Monica S. Aswani, DrPH and Paul R. Shafer, PhD, Medicaid Personal Needs Allowances—Overdue for Adjustment, JAMA Health Forum, January 3, 2025
“We are all aging. Growing older is not one agency’s focus. Across the Administration, policies and programs impact our older population. We are excited to work across the Administration to make Massachusetts a better place for residents of all ages to grow up and grow older, together.”
Secretary Robin Lipson, Executive Office of Aging & Independence, Governor Healey Officially Renames Executive Office of Elder Affairs to “Executive Office of Aging & Independence, Office of Governor Maura Healey and Lt. Governor Kim Driscoll, January 9, 2025
“Renaming the Executive Office of Elder Affairs to the Executive Office of Aging & Independence not only demonstrates the Commonwealth’s commitment to serving our older adults but reflects that we are serious about addressing ageism in the state. As the aging population grows in Massachusetts, we must redefine what it means to advance in age and celebrate the benefits of achieving longevity.
Representative Thomas M. Stanley (D-Waltham), House Chair, Joint Committee on Elder Affairs, Governor Healey Officially Renames Executive Office of Elder Affairs to “Executive Office of Aging & Independence, Office of Governor Maura Healey and Lt. Governor Kim Driscoll, January 9, 2025
“People must have access to the vital health care services they need. Hospital closures in recent years, however, have left patients worried about where they can access care and resulted in job losses for invaluable nurses and healthcare workers. Our audit of the Center for Health Information and Analysis revealed a startling lack of oversight around the financial conditions of hospitals in the Commonwealth.
State Auditor Diana DiZoglio, Audit Reveals Financial Conditions Not Appropriately Monitored at Hospitals, Including Steward Facilities, January 3, 2025)
When private equity takes over health care operators, like Prospect, they “bleed them dry.”
“The end result is almost always harmful both to patients and to hardworking hospital staff,” said Whitehouse. “As we make decisions about our health care system moving forward, we need to be very clear that the priorities for a hospital must be its patients and workers – not greedy private equity investors.”
U. S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (RI – D), Prospect files for bankruptcy, leaving its hospitals in R.I. and Conn. in limbo, Boston Globe, January 12, 2025
The “Industry-Specific Compliance Program Guidance for Skilled Nursing Facilities and Nursing Facilities” identifies key risk areas for potential fraud and abuse and provides strategies to mitigate them: (1) quality of care and quality of life for residents, (2) Medicare and Medicaid billing requirements, (3) the federal Anti-Kickback Statute (AKS), and (4) other risk areas such as related-party transactions and privacy breaches.
HHS Publishes Nursing Facility Industry-Specific Compliance Program Guidance (ICPG), Husch Blackwell, December 6, 2024
“Skyrocketing costs of prescription drugs and pervasive practices by private equity interests in health care have created an untenable situation for Massachusetts residents seeking care.
Senator Cindy F. Friedman (D-Arlington), Senate Chair of the Joint Committee on Health Care Financing, Governor Healey Signs Laws Lowering Health Care Costs and Strengthening Oversight, Office of Governor Maura Healey and Lt. Governor Kim Driscoll, January 9, 2025
“These new laws put patients and working families over corporate profits,” said “These measures take critical steps to limit out-of-pocket costs for residents and hold pharmacy benefit managers and private equity firms accountable.
Senator John J. Cronin (D-Fitchburg), Senate Chair of the Joint Committee on Consumer Protection and Professional Licensure, Governor Healey Signs Laws Lowering Health Care Costs and Strengthening Oversight, Office of Governor Maura Healey and Lt. Governor Kim Driscoll, January 9, 2025
As signed into law by Governor Maura Healy on January 8, An Act Enhancing the Market Review Process (H 5159) will have profound effects for private equity (PE) investors and real estate investment trusts (REITs) engaging with the Massachusetts health care market. Passage of the Act comes on the heels of prominent PE-backed hospital failures in Massachusetts.
What Private Equity Investors and Real Estate Investment Trusts Need to Know About the Newly Enacted Massachusetts Health Oversight Law, The National Law Review, January 9, 2025
“While we can never fully repay the debt that we owe to veterans for their service to our country, this bipartisan legislation is one way that we can provide more veterans and their families with the support that they have earned and deserve. I am glad that we came together on both sides of the aisle to pass into law this bill that will, in particular, help more veterans age with dignity.”
U. S. Senator Maggie Hassan, (NH-D), SIGNED INTO LAW: Senator Hassan and Colleagues’ Bipartisan Legislation to Strengthen Veterans’ Health Care and Benefits, Office of U. S. Senator Maggie Hassan, January 3, 2025
If a sale proceeds? Pine Crest won’t be the same. . . For now, it’s “full of neighbors and friends and people from our community, people who love us and know us.
“You don’t find that in some big city, and you don’t find that in a private, for-profit nursing home.”
Arlene Meyer, 86 year-old resident of Pine Crest, ‘We own it. It’s our place.’ Worsened care feared as counties privatize their nursing homes, *WPR and Wisconsin Watch, January 13, 2025
“It was really dramatic. We are optimistic that health plans who pay treatment fees for sober homes will see health care costs decline.”
Mary Takach, senior health policy adviser at Boston Health Care for the Homeless, A local sober housing program funded by health insurer helps people recover from addiction, *Boston Globe, January 11, 2025
January 7, 2025
Policymakers, healthcare professionals, and community leaders must work together to ensure that the pursuit of profits does not come at the expense of patient care and community health. As the debate continues, it’s clear that finding a balance between financial sustainability and quality healthcare delivery will be crucial for the future of the American healthcare system.
Nursing Home Fines Skyrocket After Private Equity Buyouts, Studies Find, Nurse.org , January 2, 2025
One of the most significant [demographic] trends, however, is the growth in the number of older adult households. With the oldest baby boomers turning 80 in 2026, the number of households headed by a person aged 80 or older will rise nearly 60 percent in the next ten years—an increase of nearly 6 million households. This will lead to an unprecedented number of older adult households, an extraordinary need for housing and services, and ever higher numbers of households lost each year from aging or mortality that will drive down net household growth.
New Projections Anticipate a Slowdown in Household Growth and Housing Demand, Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies, January 6, 2025
“This was not a short-term, unintentional failure to meet staffing requirements but an intentional and repeated misuse of public funds with the goal of maximizing corporate and personal profits,” the [New Jersey] Office of the State Comptroller wrote in its mid-December report.
Staffing challenges unlikely to ease at NJ nursing homes, NJ Spotlight News, January 6, 2025
“New Jersey’s direct care workforce is shrinking and cannot meet the needs of the growing elderly population. Many (long-term care) staff are feeling overwhelmed and undervalued, while engaged in physically and emotionally difficult work,” the long-term care task force wrote, warning this leaves a growing elder population under-protected. “Despite these minimum staffing standards, nursing home residents continually complain about understaffing, and the types of problems and conditions that are attendant to understaffing.”
Staffing challenges unlikely to ease at NJ nursing homes, NJ Spotlight News, January 6, 2025
“We believe that more public oversight of this largely for-profit, private equity-backed industry is necessary to ensure that Medicaid dollars are being properly invested in frontline care. This is key to solving the staffing question.
“Ensuring adequate staffing and safe care for nursing home residents cannot be optional – it is a core responsibility of the licensed operator.
“We should not take at face value the claim that nursing operators are unable to find enough staff, especially when their finances are shielded from public scrutiny and many owners are actively attempting to weaken the job standards that workers fought hard to achieve,”
Milly Silva, 1199SEIU United Healthcare Workers East, New Jersey, Staffing challenges unlikely to ease at NJ nursing homes, NJ Spotlight News, January 6, 2025
“I think we have more relief and improvement [in staffing levels] when we are unionized. We have to do better for our older people.”
Debbie White, president and CEO of HPAE New Jersey’s largest health care union, Staffing challenges unlikely to ease at NJ nursing homes, NJ Spotlight News, January 6, 2025
Alcohol is a leading preventable cause of cancer, and alcoholic beverages should carry a warning label as packs of cigarettes do. . . [A]lcohol directly contributes to 100,000 cancer cases and 20,000 related deaths each year.
Dr. Vivek Murthy, U.S. surgeon general, Surgeon General Calls for Cancer Warnings on Alcohol, *New York Times, January 3, 2025
A person sick with norovirus can shed significant amounts of the virus, and it doesn’t take much to infect someone else. Because of this, the virus thrives in crowded, indoor spaces like cruise ships, nursing homes, schools and day care centers.
Norovirus Outbreaks Are Rising Nationwide, C.D.C. Says, *New York Times, January 2, 2025 (updated)
Medicare patients enrolled in an accountable care organization were most likely to be referred to a high-quality nursing home, much more so than patients in the Medicare Advantage program or even those covered by traditional Medicare. . .
“[Medicare Advantage programs] are trying to steer the enrollees to low-quality SNFs, probably because low-quality SNFs mean lower payments.
Huiying Wang, a post-doctoral research associate at Brown University’s Center for Gerontology and Healthcare, ACO beneficiaries most likely to land in high-quality nursing homes, McKnights Long-Term Care News, January 3, 2025
The 2021 [New York state] law — which requires nursing homes to spend a minimum of 70% of revenue on patient care and mandates that 40% of that portion be spent on staffing — led to an April 2023 suit that argued the rule is a regulatory overstep and unfairly singles out nursing homes in violation of the state and US constitutions.
Dozens of nursing homes fight state’s decision to strip them of capital funding, McKnights Long-Term Care News, January 2, 2025
Nearly 30 percent of pharmacies in the United States closed between 2010 and 2021, according to a new study in the journal Health Affairs. After initial years of growth, the number of closures outpaced that of openings from 2018 to 2021. . . CVS, the nation’s largest pharmacy chain, opened 100 stores between 2022 and 2024; in that period, it closed 900. Walgreens announced in October that it would shutter 1,200 of its roughly 8,500 stores over three years. Independent pharmacies, the Health Affairs study noted, face more than twice the risk of closure compared with chain stores.
As Drugstores Close, Older People Are Left in ‘Pharmacy Deserts’,*New York Times, December 21, 2024
“This legislation is a testament to our collective commitment to treating substance use disorder with compassion and evidence. As an addiction medicine physician, I see firsthand the transformative impact that access to treatment, recovery supports, and overdose reversal medications can have on patients and their families.”
Sarah Wakeman, M.D., Senior Medical Director for Substance Use Disorders, Mass General Brigham, Governor Healey Signs Bill Making Substance Use Disorder Treatment and Recovery Support More Affordable and Accessible, Office of Governor Maura Healey and Lt. Governor Kim Driscoll, December 24, 2024
“People must have access to the vital health care services they need. Hospital closures in recent years, however, have left patients worried about where they can access care and resulted in job losses for invaluable nurses and healthcare workers.
State Auditor Diana DiZoglio, Audit Reveals Financial Conditions Not Appropriately Monitored at Hospitals, Including Steward Facilities, Office of State Auditor Diana DiZoglio, January 3, 2025
“We thought we had a clear path to reauthorization of the Older Americans Act and extension of the Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act. Now, it looks like Congress is back to square one. The aging services network is scrambling to ensure older adults — especially those with low incomes — are not left out of the final funding bill.”
Ramsey Alwin, president and CEO of the National Council on Aging in a LinkedIn post on Dec. 20, Older Americans Act reauthorization in limbo: What to know, Association of Healthcare Journalists, December 20, 2024 (updated)
Older Americans Act reauthorization is caught up in this “kick the can” strategy until a new deal is reached, but vital services will continue to operate at fiscal year 2024 levels.
Bob Blancato, executive director of the National Association of Nutrition and Aging Services Programs, Older Americans Act reauthorization in limbo: What to know, Association of Healthcare Journalists, December 20, 2024 (updated)
“As recipients get sicker, though, they may have more difficulty accessing services than people with traditional Medicare. That’s because the insurers actively manage the care, including requiring patients to get approval for certain services and limiting which hospitals and doctors patients can use.”
Anna Wilde Mathews, Christopher Weaver and Tom McGinty, WSJ analysis shows sickest seniors leaving Medicare Advantage, shifting costs to taxpayers(Association of Healthcare Journalists, December 20, 2024 (updated))
Skilled nursing facility spending accounted for the largest share of the difference in average Medicare spending per person between people who disenrolled from Medicare Advantage and those continuously in traditional Medicare (34%), followed by outpatient hospital spending (23%), and inpatient hospital spending (20%), with some variation by chronic conditions and other beneficiary characteristics.
Medicare Spending was 27% More for People who Disenrolled from Medicare Advantage than for Similar People in Traditional Medicare, KFF, December 6, 2024
“One of foremost health policy challenges facing the next Trump administration will be striking a balance between retaining the law’s elements that align with the President-elect’s agenda — to lower prescription drug costs for Medicare beneficiaries — and addressing those features it opposes, such as Medicare drug price negotiation.”
Douglas Holtz-Eakin, president of the American Action Forum and the former director of the Congressional Budget Office, For Medicare members, the Inflation Reduction Act cuts drug costs, spreads out payments, (Association of Healthcare Journalists, November 11, 2024
“I will elect telemedicine over an in-person visit whenever it’s available.”
Kent Manuel, who has cancer and uses a wheelchair due to paralysis following spinal surgery, Telemedicine for Seniors Gets a Last-Minute Reprieve, *New York Times, January 5, 2025
As of Dec. 16, 329 behavioral health patients, including 47 children, were boarding in Massachusetts emergency rooms, down from 522 adults and 60 children last year. Behavioral health boarders and behavioral health patients awaiting evaluation now occupy 12 percent of ER beds across the state, down from 16 percent a year ago.
Community behavioral health centers have helped ease the ER boarding crisis. Now some are struggling financially., *Boston Globe, January 4, 2025
For many nursing home residents, a trip to the hospital can be a jarring experience—one that leaves them confused and stressed. Yet avoidable transfers happen far too often, not only disrupting a resident’s routine but also costing the U.S. health care system $2.6 billion annually.
Researchers aim to reduce avoidable hospitalizations for nursing home residents with dementia, Medical Xpress, January 3, 2025
“Not all residents with dementia can tell the nursing home staff they don’t want to be transferred to the hospital, so our research highlights the importance of documenting advanced care planning for residents ahead of time. Having those conversations early and often—ideally when a resident might be in an earlier stage of disease progression and better able to communicate their desires and values—helps us honor them through the rest of their life.”
Kimberly Powell, an assistant professor in the Columbia, Missouri Sinclair School of Nursing, Researchers aim to reduce avoidable hospitalizations for nursing home residents with dementia, Medical Xpress, January 3, 2025
A new study involving more than 80,000 US nursing homes has found a link between the use of staffing agency nurses and lower quality ratings in the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services Five-Star system.
The use of agency registered nurses, licensed practical nurses and certified nursing assistants decreased a facility’s chance of attaining higher star ratings by 4%, 5% and 4%, respectively, researchers discovered.
Agency nurses linked to lower CMS nursing home quality ratings, McKnights Long-Term Care News, January 6, 2025
“Agency nurses have less familiarity with residents’ specific needs and facility protocols, potentially impacting continuity and consistency in care. Their presence may also create issues for permanent nursing staff who may feel that they have to ‘guide’ the agency nursing staff.”
Rohit Pradhan, health services researcher at Texas State University, Agency nurses linked to lower CMS nursing home quality ratings, McKnights Long-Term Care News, January 6, 2025
“[Enhanced] payment [for private room occupancy for Medicaid recipients] was the result of collaboration of Ohio’s nursing home associations and the General Assembly, who all recognized the difference that private rooms make to dignity and quality of life. We have seen an increase in the number of beds that have been relinquished statewide, as providers have converted shared rooms to private, so this payment has already made an impact.”
LeadingAge Ohio president and CEO Susan Wallace, Ohio gets go-ahead for its private nursing home room Medicaid add-on, McKnight’s Long-Term Care News, January 6, 2025
January 3, 2025
“My father was a hero, not only to me but to everyone who believes in peace, human rights, and unselfish love. My brothers, sister, and I shared him with the rest of the world through these common beliefs. The world is our family because of the way he brought people together, and we thank you for honoring his memory by continuing to live these shared beliefs.”
Chip Carter, Jimmy Carter, 39th president and Nobel Peace Prize winner, dies at 100, *Washington Post, December 29, 2024
“If I were an amputee, for instance, my prayer would not be to restore my leg but to help me make the best of my condition, and to be thankful for life and opportunities to be a blessing to others. At the moment, we are monitoring the status of my cancer, and my prayers about my own health are similar to this.”
President Jimmy Carter, from “Faith: A Journey for All”, Jimmy Carter, On Death, New York Times (free access), December 31, 2024
“Perhaps the most troubling aspect of our later years is the need to face the inevitability of our own impending physical death. For some people, this fact becomes a cause of great distress, sometimes with attendant resentment against God or even those around us.”
President Jimmy Carter, from “The Virtues of Aging”, Jimmy Carter, On Death, New York Times (free access), December 31, 2024
The newly passed legislation does what this board has called for — it brings pharmaceutical manufacturers and pharmacy benefit managers under the Massachusetts Health Policy Commission’s health care cost trends process. . . The next [needed] step will be monitoring these reforms and continuing to examine what additional changes are needed to control costs and limit business practices that don’t prioritize patients.
Last-minute health care bills make needed reforms, *Boston Globe, January 2, 2025
“Today’s ruling affirms the right of thousands of people with disabilities to choose how and where they live. . [P]eople with disabilities around the country are applauding the Court’s recognition of their civil rights.”
Kelly Bagby, an attorney with the AARP Foundation who represented the plaintiffs, Judge rules against D.C. in long-running suit from nursing home residents, *Washington Post, December 31, 2024
“These decisions impact hundreds of seniors and their caregivers, together with the health care workers at these facilities and their families. Hearings will be held to allow the public to weigh in on these decisions, but the trend is clear: the financial instability of nursing homes in Connecticut is getting worse. We need answers and long-term solutions. As policymakers, we can either watch these closures adversely affect senior’s lives and healthcare jobs, or we can work in bipartisan fashion at the State Capitol to bring stability and predictably to long term care. We must choose the latter course of action because seniors and labor deserve better.”
Connecticut Republican State Senators Kevin Kelly, Tony Hwang and Henri Martin, Athena Health Care to close two nursing homes in Bristol, WFSB.com, December 26, 2024
“Navigating the decision to place a loved one in a nursing home is an emotional and challenging process. This legislation ensures that families have clear, accurate, and accessible information to help them choose the best possible care for their loved ones. Transparency and accountability are essential in providing peace of mind during such critical decisions.”
New York State Assemblyman Angelo Santabarbara, who sponsored the legislation, New law requires nursing homes to post ratings (WNYT.com, December 29, 2024 (updated))
Delinquency rates for nursing homes saw a continued rise for three consecutive quarters, reaching 2.7% in 2024. That’s up from 0.6% in late 2023, according to the report.
(Nursing Home Loan Delinquency Rates Rise in 2024, Hit 2.7%, Skilled Nursing News, December 26, 2024
“I was teed off about [the sale of county-owned Pine Crest Nursing Home] because of some of these SOBs. They said, ‘well, the cost factor.’ Now I think about what jerks were running this.”
86 year-old Arlene Meyer, a former Lincoln County Board supervisor who is now a resident of Pine Crest Nursing Home, ‘We own it. It’s our place.’ Worsened care feared as counties privatize their nursing homes (The Monroe Times, December 25, 2024)
“I was starting to get to the point where I did have some hope, and I was like, maybe I can see an actual end to this and it was just cut off prematurely. . . I believed I could get better. With just a little more time, I could discharge, and I could live life finally.”
Geneva Moore, whose behavioral health services were curtailed by Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas, Her Mental Health Treatment Was Helping. That’s Why Insurance Cut Off Her Coverage. (Pro Publica, December 31, 2024
“We know that private equity increases the mortality of Medicare residents by 10%. We know these things now. And it’s just really no… private equity should not be in health care. It should not be in nursing homes. . . These aren’t folks that are in it for the care. These aren’t folks that are looking at fines and violations and saying, oh, we can do better. They’re saying, you know, how can we get around them?”
Sam Brooks, the National Consumer Voice for Quality Long-Term Care, ‘Private equity should not be in healthcare’ – Nursing home fines rise after buyouts, KCRG.com, January 1, 2025