HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 3604        FILED ON: 1/18/2019

HOUSE  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  No. 600

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

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PRESENTED BY:

Christine P. Barber

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To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in General
Court assembled:

The undersigned legislators and/or citizens respectfully petition for the adoption of the accompanying bill:

An Act supporting affordable senior housing and services.

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PETITION OF:

HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 3604        FILED ON: 1/18/2019

HOUSE  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  No. 600

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

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In the One Hundred and Ninety-First General Court
(2019-2020)

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An Act supporting affordable senior housing and services.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:
 

SECTION 1. Notwithstanding any general or special law to the contrary, the Executive Office of Health and Human Services (EOHHS) shall develop a demonstration program aimed at expanding the availability of on-site service coordination and supports at affordable senior housing properties in the Commonwealth for the purpose of supporting tenants to access needed services including health care services and enabling them to remain in their communities for as long as possible. The demonstration shall seek to establish site-based staffing teams of enhanced service coordinators and wellness nurses, modeled on the Supports and Services at Home (SASH) program. Properties selected for the demonstration may include state financed (Chapter 667) senior housing properties, senior housing managed by public housing authorities and privately developed and owned, federally subsidized senior housing properties including but not limited to properties developed under the Section 202 program. The site-based staff may be employed directly by the senior housing entity or may be contracted for by the housing entities participating in the demonstration. 

The demonstration program shall seek to facilitate coordination between the on-site teams at the senior housing entities with care management of managed and integrated care plans (including Senior Care Options (SCOs), PACE, Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs) and Medicare Advantage plans), for individuals enrolled in such plans living in participating buildings. The demonstration will seek to establish creative solutions to incentivize collaboration among and between plans and with the on-site service teams in participating buildings for the purpose of integration, as well as to fund the on-site support team. Funding for the on-site services shall come from pooling resources from participating plans, which may include per-member per month formula.  Payments made by health plans will count towards a plan’s Medical Loss Ratio (MLR). 

In instances where the function of the Geriatric Support Services Coordinator (GSSC) can be conducted by the onsite housing team, EOHHS shall waive the requirement for the participating SCOs to contract with a separate GSSC.  

The demonstration shall also seek to better coordinate and streamline case management and home care services authorized and provided by Aging Service Access Points (ASAPs) in participating senior housing sites to create efficiencies and enhance coordination and communication. 

SECTION 2. EOHHS will report within 365 days after enactment the following information to the Chairs of the Committee on House and Senate Ways Means: the number of housing entities selected to participate in the demonstration; the names of participating SCO, PACE, ACO and Medicare Advantage plans; the number of new service coordinators funded under the demonstration and numbers of residents in participating building enrolled in SCO, PACE, ACO and Medicare Advantage plans.