Chapter 19A of the General Laws is hereby amended by inserting after section 13, the following section:-               Section 14: Notwithstanding any general or special law to the contrary, there is hereby established an advisory committee on residential care facilities, or rest homes, as defined in M.G.L. chapter 111, section 72.  The advisory committee is charged with reviewing the status of residential care facilities (RCFs)  in the Commonwealth, including the profile of residents currently residing in RCFs, the role RCFs play within the larger healthcare and housing systems, and regulatory and reimbursement barriers that may prevent RCFs from providing needed services to elders and persons with disabilities.  The advisory committee shall make recommendations to the Executive Office of Health and Human Services relative to regulatory changes needed and funding and reimbursement options to maximize residential care facilities as viable options for elders and persons with disabilities in the Commonwealth. Specifically, the advisory committee shall study funding and payment options for residential care facilities which will maximize federal financial participation, including making residential care a service funded under the section 1915(c) Home and Community Based Services waiver and amending the state plan to make residential care a reimbursable service.  The advisory committee will also review the status of physical plant needs of residential care facilities and will consider options for meeting capital improvements necessary to provide quality care and improve the quality of life for residents in residential care including accessing state housing resources.   Based on the results of the study, the advisory committee shall make a recommendation to the Secretary of Health and Human Services on actions to be taken, no later than 90 days following the passage of this act.  The Secretary of  Health and Human Services shall take whatever steps necessary to implement the committee’s recommendation.

The advisory committee shall be comprised of  the Secretary of Health and Human Services or his/her designee, who will serve as the chair of the committee, the Secretary of the Executive Office of Elder Affairs, or his/her designee, the Commissioner of the Department of Transitional Assistance or his or her designee, the undersecretary of the Department of Housing and Community Development or his/her designee, the Executive Director of the Center for Health Information and Analysis or his or her designee, the Director of the Division of Health Care Quality at the Department of Public Health or his or her designee, the Commissioner of the Department of Mental Health or his/her designee,  the director of the Office for Medicaid or his or her designee, the director of the Office of Long Term Services and Supports, one state Senator to be appointed by the Senate President, one state representative to be appointed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives, three individuals representing residential care providers at least one from LeadingAge Massachusetts (formerly MassAging) and one from the Mass Association of Residential Care Homes (MARCH).