SENATE DOCKET, NO. 936        FILED ON: 1/16/2019

SENATE  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  No. 1220

 

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

_________________

PRESENTED BY:

Joanne M. Comerford

_________________

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 advancing health equity.

_______________

PETITION OF:

 

Name:

District/Address:

 

Joanne M. Comerford

Hampshire, Franklin and Worcester

 

Jason M. Lewis

Fifth Middlesex

1/23/2019

Julian Cyr

Cape and Islands

1/24/2019

Mindy Domb

3rd Hampshire

1/28/2019

James B. Eldridge

Middlesex and Worcester

1/31/2019

José F. Tosado

9th Hampden

1/31/2019

David Henry Argosky LeBoeuf

17th Worcester

1/31/2019

Russell E. Holmes

6th Suffolk

2/1/2019

David Allen Robertson

19th Middlesex

2/1/2019

Tram T. Nguyen

18th Essex

2/22/2019

Rebecca L. Rausch

Norfolk, Bristol and Middlesex

3/26/2019

Marcos A. Devers

16th Essex

4/16/2019


SENATE DOCKET, NO. 936        FILED ON: 1/16/2019

SENATE  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  No. 1220

By Ms. Comerford, a petition (accompanied by bill, Senate, No. 1220) of Joanne M. Comerford, Julian Cyr, Mindy Domb, James B. Eldridge and other members of the General Court for legislation to advance health equity.  Public Health.

 

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

 

_______________

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

_______________

 

An Act advancing health equity.

 

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

Section 16AA of chapter 6A of the General Laws, as inserted by section 7 of chapter 154 of the Acts of 2018, is hereby amended by adding after subsection (f) the following subsection:-

(g) The secretary of health and human services shall annually, on the day assigned for submission of the budget by the governor to the general court pursuant to section 7H of chapter 29, designate major initiatives of the commonwealth affecting the health and health care of residents of the commonwealth. The initiatives may include any activity of the commonwealth including, but not limited to, activities of the executive office of health and human services, the executive office of housing and economic development, the executive office of public safety and security, the executive office of energy and environmental affairs, the Massachusetts Department of Transportation, the executive office of labor and workforce development and the executive office of education.

For each major initiative, the office shall prepare a health equity impact statement evaluating the likely positive or negative impact of each initiative on promoting health equity and eliminating or reducing racial and ethnic health disparities. The statements shall, to the extent possible, include quantifiable impacts and evaluation benchmarks. The statements shall be posted on the official internet site of the executive office of health and human services and submitted to the clerks of the house of representatives and senate, members of the health disparities council, the joint committees on public health and health care financing and the house and senate committees on ways and means.