The $1 billion settlement of a class action lawsuit has the potential to see 2,400 Massachusetts nursing home residents move into other residential and community settings in the next decade.
The options include assisted living communities, although state senior living experts say that it’s unlikely many of those transitions will be to assisted living.
The state agreed to settle the suit, initially filed in 2022 by six disabled nursing homes residents who argued that a lack of state resources “trapped” them in nursing homes despite their wishes to return to community-based care settings.
Under the terms of the settlement, the state will invest $1 billion over the next eight years in housing programs to help nursing home residents move into community-based care. This effort includes the creation of rental vouchers for individuals with disabilities, as well as the creation of new residential settings.
Residents will have the ability to transition to a provider-operated setting with 24/7 supervision and support, their own or a family member’s home, or a public housing setting or assisted living community, according to the settlement.
The state also will create Community Transition Liaison Program teams to advise nursing home residents on their living options.
“Massachusetts has a strong history of providing a robust set of home- and community-based services aimed at rebalancing services away from facilities and toward community settings,” Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll (D) said in a statement. “Our administration is committed to expanding access to housing options so that more older adults and individuals with disabilities and mental illness are served in the most appropriate and least restrictive settings.”
The Office of Health and Human Services spends more than $5.8 billion annually through MassHealth and HCBS waivers on long-term services and supports, including personal care, home health and adult day programs.
But it’s unclear whether assisted living providers could see many of these transitioning residents.
“For this settlement to meaningfully increase access to assisted living, Massachusetts would need to join other states that have extended the Frail Elder Waiver to include assisted living,” Massachusetts Assisted Living Association President and CEO Brian Doherty told McKnight’s Senior Living. “The Massachusetts Assisted Living Association continues to advocate for this change that would provide more options and affordability for older adults navigating the senior living landscape.”
Tara Gregorio, president of the Massachusetts Senior Care Association, agreed that the conditions outlined in the agreement likely would not lead to a significant influx of nursing facilities residents transferring into assisted living residences.
Gregorio told McKnight’s Long-Term Care News, the skilled nursing-focused sister publication to McKnight’s Senior Living, that the association supports and collaborates on efforts to ensure that residents have access to safe discharges to the community.
