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Advocates urge lawmakers to adopt supported decision-making law as alternative to guardianship
Summary
Supporters, self-advocates and legal experts told the Joint Committee on Children, Families and Persons with Disabilities that a statutory framework for supported decision-making (SDM) would preserve autonomy, reduce unnecessary guardianships and improve transitions to adulthood and hospital care.
Supporters of a bill to create a statutory framework for supported decision-making told a legislative committee on Tuesday that the change would give adults with disabilities an option between full guardianship and no formal support. Nora Bent, director of government affairs at The Arc of Massachusetts, said the bill would let individuals “make their own decisions with the guardianship for those who do not need that level of support.” Jonathan Garner, a cancer survivor and co-chair of the Massachusetts Supported Decision Making Coalition, described how SDM allowed him to remain the final decision maker while getting help: “When I choose supporters, I pick people who respect me and believe in me.”
Advocates told the committee SDM has been adopted in more than 20 states and is endorsed by national groups including the American Bar Association. They said SDM can be especially effective during transitions—when students turn 18 or when patients move between hospital and home—because it is less costly and quicker than a guardianship proceeding. Morgan Whitlatch of the Center for Public Representation, which ran Massachusetts SDM demonstration projects, told the panel the proposed law would improve “access to, recognition and enforceability” of SDM agreements across the Commonwealth.
Proponents emphasized safeguards in the bill: plain‑language agreements, notarization, limits on conflicts of interest and training requirements so healthcare and financial institutions will accept SDM arrangements. Families and self‑advocates gave repeated, personal examples: Alana Russo said hospital staff consulted her SDM team when she had pulmonary blood clots, and that coordinated approach sped her recovery. Opponents at the hearing cautioned that SDM needs strong protections for people with severe cognitive impairments and asked for clear capacity standards and court backstops.
Lawmakers heard that SDM is not intended to abolish guardianship for people who truly need it. Supporters asked the committee to report the bill favorably so that schools, hospitals and courts will routinely offer SDM as an option during key transition planning. “Support decision making allowed me to choose people I trust to help me think through my decisions while I remain the decision maker,” Garner said.
