[{"_1":2,"_100":-5,"_101":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,76,88],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},"mediaId",6193484,"mediaKeyId","3867052-0d5e721aeaf746a53b92a94dab05515d","parentId",3867052,"title","Disability advocates press committee to pass bill banning disability‑based health care discrimination","audioSeconds",2000,"startMs",1394000,"endMs",3394000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=3867052-0d5e721aeaf746a53b92a94dab05515d&start=1394&end=3394","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3867052-0d5e721aeaf746a53b92a94dab05515d/thumbnail_1394000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6193484/Massachusetts/Disability-advocates-press-committee-to-pass-bill-banning-disabilitybased-health-care-discrimination","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6193484-e8733f70863bf169556c579e0bfbdf97/orig.mp4?Expires=1770414249&Signature=LgddMYATSxEkifbWLJEojMigSPAP0ySx3sVc2h5H0qOnrmnDuN7z7vEKGdvBHqS4XuAh95ND24tv-rM89dBiqAccEXq2-j-WIwmqHw89L3MLcO7MO2xieafezERPC8dNFB0z~zfmuD3GSn6I9eR5tj2-dR4Rmfxf2UbMXsjCUNmB7DPc-zV2gHG~~8rFx4FUhgxhP8Bexu7n8ujaWOWbd43ry-8mBNmdb6d8j7ayGLWdaZ~g7RKxT0CQygYs6GhSSt4ocnUQ1hHN2BBpKdJYL1jVduTEQx8XkU-RUTGNIw21Ke5JKhI09BbwCILyY7sLiOkYqCho34iueWrI9urN1g__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Massachusetts Legislature","date","2025-06-18T00:00:00Z","article","People with disabilities, family members, clinicians and statewide advocacy organizations told the Joint Committee on Healthcare Financing that H1360/S869 is necessary to prevent discrimination in care decisions and to protect disabled patients from being deprioritized for life‑saving treatment.

Testimony described repeated incidents where disabled patients were refused treatment, pressured into do‑not‑resuscitate (DNR) orders, or assessed using measures that implicitly devalue disabled lives. \"People with disabilities deserve to be treated equally, not less,\" said Samantha Fine of the Disability Policy Consortium, adding that the bill \"bans metrics in the provision of health care that devalues disabled lives over nondisabled lives.\"

Multiple witnesses recounted individual cases. Holly Simeone described her adult daughter’s treatment during the COVID crisis standards of care and said triage labeling and the refusal to provide supplies and pain management led to preventable suffering. Don Summerfield told the committee he had knowledge of an instance during the pandemic where a person with an invisible disability was denied a ventilator; he urged a roll‑call vote. Jonathan Garner and Kyle Kennedy recounted being refused or shunted aside because of disability diagnoses.

Speakers referenced federal law and guidance: the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 and an Attorney General clarifying order (September 2010) for Title II/III obligations and interpreter accommodations were cited as legal background supporting the bill’s protections. Witnesses also described the role of quality‑adjusted life year (QALY) or similar metrics as discriminatory and noted prior legislative compromise language with ICER to prohibit discriminatory metrics while allowing nondiscriminatory value assessments.

Disability organizations asked the committee to report H1360 and S869 favorably so the Legislature can adopt statutory protections that would make it unlawful to deny or deprioritize care on the basis of disability, to pressure patients into advance directives as a condition of care, or to use life‑valuation metrics that deprioritize disabled lives.

No formal committee vote took place during the hearing; the chairs invited additional written testimony and said staff would collect submitted materials for committee review.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Joint Committee on Health Care Financing - 6-18-2025","oneSentenceSummary","Multiple disability organizations, patients and clinicians testified in favor of H1360/S869 to bar healthcare discrimination based on disability, prohibit quality-adjusted life measures that devalue disabled lives, and stop coercive DNR practices; witnesses cited pandemic-era crisis standards and ADA guidance.","taxTitle","2025 Legislature MA, Massachusetts","taxId",77682,"location","Massachusetts","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":77,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":78,"_41":79,"_43":80,"_45":81,"_47":82,"_49":83,"_51":84,"_53":85,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":86,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":87,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6193487,"Committee hears support for S863 to expand non‑opioid chronic pain care and data collection",8383,665000,9048000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=3867052-0d5e721aeaf746a53b92a94dab05515d&start=665&end=9048","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3867052-0d5e721aeaf746a53b92a94dab05515d/thumbnail_665000.jpg","/articles/6193487/Massachusetts/Committee-hears-support-for-S863-to-expand-nonopioid-chronic-pain-care-and-data-collection","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6193487-a774af14f50d1b302f57c1781f3e5f5b/orig.mp4?Expires=1770414249&Signature=YRZlGAQtesJ6f3zGP98ztSBuITb~ced8pjZEP2ZN58tHSrROtGUDu5UOqrz5IejCQLSVpjwWst5-AHWS-QjvfgnZiXyHKyUZsUQPmmdxYaxH66m4M4X36G5D9cSHltH3yR4IMnzJRaHxzpiiv3SvpsQWOhLMc-rGdBhcrRPjgnagD2i0Mu-fkG~hDJnlxzE6vsQttfuSMdg-HPQ~JCveqGnDETjaAYFXl734Hf0AT731KTjQGW~FNiK-mK~5fwnpzrdB2eunbFSu8flZlZD3tRBiEkpqMKZr9csrsEGl5PWkfftNeTOCpW53mAfhPtqrkZn4ew8kkIBOLIlElysMbQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Advocates, clinicians and patients urged the Joint Committee on Healthcare Financing to support S863, legislation described in testimony as aiming to expand non‑opioid treatment access and coordinate chronic pain care for MassHealth members.

Cindy Steinberg, policy council chair of the Massachusetts Pain Initiative, told the committee that chronic pain has become a disease of the nervous system and that many patients live for years without appropriate care. \"S863 would go a long way toward addressing these problems and improving the care of individuals on MassHealth by providing care coordination and support to help members access appropriate providers and specialists,\" Steinberg said.

Nurse practitioner Jackie Nathan and other clinicians testified that primary care providers often lack time and training to manage complex persistent pain, and they supported provisions in S863 for primary care training, care coordination, and coverage parity so non‑opioid medications are not subject to additional insurer restrictions. Nathan said the bill’s measures would help ensure MassHealth patients can access multidisciplinary approaches — physical therapy, behavioral health, social work and pain management — that research shows can improve functioning for many people with chronic pain.

Patients with chronic conditions including juvenile‑onset rheumatoid arthritis, endometriosis and sickle cell disease described long delays in diagnoses, repeated denials or confusion about coverage, and the social consequences of inadequately managed pain. \"Giving assistance to people, especially from lower socioeconomic statuses where pain is most prevalent in navigating complex needs, would help ensure no one...lose their potential,\" said Amanda Boda, who testified as a MassHealth member and PhD candidate.

S863 would also direct the state to collect and report data on prevalence, demographics, utilization, and cost for pain conditions — a step proponents said is necessary to measure the scope and plan services. Testimony repeatedly urged the committee to favorably report the bill to allow legislative debate on specifics such as benefit design and provider training standards.

No formal committee vote occurred during the hearing; chairs invited written testimony and public comment.","Advocates and clinicians told the Joint Committee on Healthcare Financing that S863 would improve access to non-opioid medications and multidisciplinary pain care for MassHealth members and create a data system to measure chronic pain prevalence and costs.",{"_33":89,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":90,"_41":91,"_43":92,"_45":93,"_47":94,"_49":95,"_51":96,"_53":97,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":98,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":99,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6193492,"Broad public testimony urges Massachusetts to adopt state Medicare-for-all trust",7583,360000,7943000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=3867052-0d5e721aeaf746a53b92a94dab05515d&start=360&end=7943","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3867052-0d5e721aeaf746a53b92a94dab05515d/thumbnail_360000.jpg","/articles/6193492/Massachusetts/Broad-public-testimony-urges-Massachusetts-to-adopt-state-Medicare-for-all-trust","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6193492-55be84a78e272e030f89b63f0b9c943a/orig.mp4?Expires=1770414249&Signature=eEAQrhRn-K9kv3OQtheX2f7VLOv2Sr0Ul2T9iJN6x663AJVX4GBc6S2~JzT0f6cfFduNP5Ly5RB-oh94f14lJJA-AH-JCafx0nRLG26x~93trL5Asd73hgiDFYo1IlSki1ItfD7QUti5pWh5cWaIAm3juHB6H4JPB0D49wxGWNDGknBrt1qMq5Xo3dY8oGh777aXxgjUkSmroYTH65G7tp4RXUWJs5-ArTB5pZUz7wvkjrAIk3OiZLMokXzQbCmJ~d2xwVBRzB52zwD7eMlfgZ~tDv7pS7HzKK5-e0vx8H6GfB8mWbygZEieFR7804BmGpclBwsU5YF~57K5Q0rIrA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Dozens of health workers, municipal officials, patient advocates and clinicians told the Joint Committee on Healthcare Financing that Massachusetts should adopt H1405/S860, legislation to establish a Massachusetts health care trust and a single-payer Medicare-for-all system.

Supporters said the state’s current mix of private insurance, employer plans and public programs produces high administrative costs, creates underinsurance and contributes to hospital closures across the Commonwealth. \"Medicare for all single payer is the most important anti-poverty legislation we can pass,\" said Marge Cohen, a physician and member of Physicians for a National Health Program, urging the committee to move the bills forward.

Advocates pointed to multiple effects they said would follow from the trust: negotiated drug and procedure pricing, elimination of premiums and cost-sharing, a stable public financing stream for hospitals and expanded coverage to dental, vision, long-term care and behavioral health. \"This trust would finance medically necessary care including but not limited to dental, vision, prescription drugs, long-term care, medical devices, mental or behavioral health, physical therapy, and rehabilitative care,\" said Christopher Spears of Our Revolution Massachusetts.

Speakers cited an economic analysis presented to the committee that estimated large savings from reducing administrative complexity and private insurer profit margins; testimony referenced Professor Gerald Friedman’s analysis showing potential multi‑billion dollar reductions in statewide health spending. Municipal officials and business representatives warned rising insurance rates and GIC pressures were squeezing town budgets and small employers. David Cornwicks, chair of the Wellesley retirement board, urged support for a separate municipal option (H1399) but said the state-level trust would relieve pressure on local budgets.

Clinicians described how administrative burdens and insurer denials consume clinician time and disrupt continuity of care; hospice and hospice-trained nurses told the committee that denials and delays cause suffering at life’s end. \"This bureaucratic waste puts a strain on the provider attempting to give comfort and dignity to their patient and an unacceptable burden on the patient,\" said Danielle Burke, a hospice nurse.

Several witnesses tied recent hospital closures and service reductions — including Stewart/Steward‑owned facilities discussed in testimony — to financial pressures under the current system and urged public ownership or trust authority powers to stabilize facilities. \"The implementation of the Massachusetts Healthcare Trust would help avoid the disruption caused by the loss of our medical centers and guarantee every resident of the Commonwealth access to high quality care,\" said Our Revolution testimony referencing recent closures.

Not all details of design and transition were settled in testimony; multiple speakers urged the committee to advance the bills so the legislature can debate financing, implementation timelines and workforce implications in detail. Supporters repeatedly asked the committee to report H1405 and S860 favorably out of committee so the bills can proceed to fuller legislative consideration.

The hearing record for H1405/S860 includes sustained public testimony in support and repeated calls for the committee to advance the bills; the committee did not take a vote during the hearing. The chairs accepted written testimony and encouraged additional submissions as the committee considers next steps.","Dozens of advocates, health professionals and municipal leaders testified in favor of H1405/S860, saying single-payer would cut administrative waste, stabilize hospitals and relieve municipal and family budgets; speakers urged the Joint Committee on Healthcare Financing to report the bills favorably.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Disability advocates press committee to pass bill banning disability‑based health care discrimination

Committee hears support for S863 to expand non‑opioid chronic pain care and data collection

Broad public testimony urges Massachusetts to adopt state Medicare-for-all trust