Author: Cindy Friedman

Legislation expands mental health, midwifery, doula offerings

(BOSTON—7/30/2024) Today the Massachusetts Senate unanimously passed legislation to strengthen access to physical and mental health care for pregnant people and new parents in Massachusetts, an expansion of support systems that is intended to keep parents and newborns healthy as they are welcomed into the world.

S.2899, An Act relative to increasing access to perinatal health care, builds on and improves existing perinatal health resources across the Commonwealth, including mental health resources, midwifery, and doula services.

“Far too often, we see and hear stories that demonstrate how important it is that we act to reduce maternal health disparities and barriers to accessing safe and adequate maternal health care,” said Senator Cindy F. Friedman (D-Arlington), Senate Chair of the Joint Committee on Health Care Financing and Vice Chair of the Senate Committee on Ways and Means. “While we still have a long way to go, this legislation makes important strides towards these efforts from the moment pregnancy starts through a year after birth, while increasing access to perinatal health care with reforms to midwifery licensure and birthing centers.”

In an effort to proactively address mental health needs, the legislation requires MassHealth and commercial insurance coverage for post-pregnancy depression screenings. It also mandates the Department of Public Health (DPH) to develop and maintain a comprehensive digital resource center on perinatal mood and anxiety disorders. 

It requires postnatal individuals receiving care from a postnatal professional to be offered a screening for post-pregnancy depression. Pediatricians will also offer screenings to postnatal individuals during infant wellness visits.… Read more.

Bill enhances oversight, requires outbreak planning, and creates an LGBTQ+ Bill of Rights 

(BOSTON—7/25/2024) The Massachusetts Senate today approved sweeping reforms to the Commonwealth’s long term care and assisted living sectors, taking a powerful step towards delivering the high quality and safe care that Massachusetts seniors deserve. S.2889, An Act relative to long term care and assisted living, substantially strengthens oversight and enforcement while also requiring facilities to create outbreak plans should a health issue arise. 

The bill also creates an LGBTQ+ bill of rights for aging residents to prohibit discrimination based on their LGBTQ+ identity or HIV status. After robust debate, Senator Cindy F. Friedman (D-Arlington) joined her colleagues in unanimously passing the bill. 

“Long term care and support of our aging population are essential to the sustainability of our state’s health care system,” said Senator Friedman, Senate Chair of the Joint Committee on Health Care Financing. “This legislation contains so many important reforms that continue the Senate’s work to promote accessible, affordable, and high-quality care, a goal that cannot be limited to hospital care. I thank Senator Jehlen for her dedicated work on this legislation and for her collaboration while the bill was in the Joint Committee on Health Care Financing.” 

The bill includes provisions related to basic health services administered in assisted living facilities and oversight of long term care facilities, including the following. 

Assisted Living Basic Health Services. The bill makes it easier for residents of nursing homes and long term care facilities to get timely and efficient care by allowing Assisted Living Residences (ALRs) to offer basic health services such as helping a resident administer drops, manage their oxygen, or take a home diagnostic test.… Read more.

Legislation directs $432 million in appropriations to fill gaps in essential services 

(BOSTON—7/24/2024) Today the Massachusetts Senate passed a supplemental budget directing funding to childcare assistance, community services, and workforce initiatives vital to the wellbeing of Massachusetts residents. The legislation directs funding to deficiencies outlined by the Healey-Driscoll Administration and makes numerous clarifications to state policies to cut red tape and create efficiencies in state government.  

“The Senate’s supplemental budget allocates funding that will be injected directly into our struggling healthcare system,” said Senator Cindy F. Friedman (D-Arlington), Vice Chair of the Senate Committee on Ways and Means. “I am especially excited that an amendment I filed was adopted, which would require commercial health insurance plans to reimburse the health care facilities treating our most vulnerable residents at a fair rate. I look forward to swift compromise legislation between the two chambers so that we can get a final product to the Governor’s desk.” 

The legislation appropriates $432 million in funding from Fiscal Year 2024 appropriations that would be made available through Fiscal Year 2025. It directs $228 million in funding for the American Rescue Plan Act Home and Community Based Services (ARPA HCBS) Reserve to promote innovative services that enhance the quality of life and independence of people in their home and community, an investment that comes at no net cost to the state.  

It includes $61 million for a critical health and human services and workforce reserve to cover projected deficiencies in Fiscal Year 2024 related to the continued need for direct care staffing to respond to health needs in nursing homes, group care settings, state hospitals, and veterans’ homes, as well as other patient health and safety supports.… Read more.

Bill boosts salary transparency, tackles unfair compensation for women and people of color 

*Update: On July 31, 2024, Governor Maura Healey signed this legislation into law. You can view that law here.

(BOSTON—7/24/2024) Today the Massachusetts Legislature took a powerful step towards closing the gender and racial wage gap in the Commonwealth by passing An Act relative to salary range transparency. The legislation requires employers with 25 or more employees to disclose a salary range when posting a position and protects an employee’s right to ask their employer for the salary range for their position when applying for a job or seeking a promotion. 

When signed into law H.4890 would make Massachusetts the eleventh state to mandate pay transparency by requiring employers to disclose salary ranges, according to the National Women’s Law Center. H.4890 builds on the Legislature’s 2016 passage of the Massachusetts Equal Pay Act, which prohibited wage discrimination based on gender and brought long-sought fairness and equality to workplaces in the state. 

“I am proud of the Legislature’s work to address pay inequities in the Commonwealth with this bill,” said Senator Cindy F. Friedman (D-Arlington), Vice Chair of the Senate Committee on Ways and Means. “The statistics speak for themselves: women, especially women of color, face significant disparities in the level of pay they receive for the same work as their white, male counterparts. Thanks to the steadfast efforts of Senate President Karen Spilka to bring the business community into the conversation, we will be able to provide the transparency and protections our workers and job seekers need to live, succeed, and grow in the Commonwealth.”… Read more.

Legislation authorizes $1.26B in bonds, allocates $400M in federal funds 

(BOSTON—7/24/2024) Today the Massachusetts Legislature enacted the FutureTech Act, taking action on a $1.26 billion bond authorization to modernize the Commonwealth’s digital infrastructure and create safer and more accessible experiences for residents and employees alike. 

Funding and projects included in H.4889, An Act to provide for the future information technology needs of Massachusetts, would allow state agencies to deliver services more efficiently to residents, enhance cybersecurity on statewide platforms, and broaden access to services used by hundreds of thousands of residents statewide. The bill would also invest in emerging technologies and artificial intelligence (AI) and create a fund to secure anticipated federal funding to bolster health and human services-related projects. 

“The Legislature’s action on the FutureTech Act puts the Commonwealth in a position to grow technology adoption and ensure our systems will improve user experience and accessibility at the state and municipal levels,” said Senator Cindy F. Friedman (D-Arlington), Vice Chair of the Senate Committee on Ways and Means. “I am especially excited to see the inclusion of a targeted fund to draw federal investments into our health and human services sector.”   

The FutureTech Act lays a foundation for technology innovation in the Commonwealth by implementing transformative projects like the Business Enterprise Systems Transformation (BEST) and the Commonwealth Digital Roadmap, both of which would be targeted at streamlining state operations and making essential government services quicker and more efficient. 

It would support a new project to consolidate and modernize the Division of Occupational Licensing’s (DOL) licensing database, which currently relies on outdated infrastructure, paper files, and manual data entry.… Read more.

Bill ensures firefighters, police officers, and EMTs receive pay after injury from violent acts 

(BOSTON—7/24/2024) Today the Massachusetts Senate unanimously passed legislation to ensure that first responders who are permanently injured by violent acts in the line of duty receive their full regular compensation until they reach retirement age. S.2887, An Act relative to disability pensions and critical incident stress management for violent crimes, enshrines into law financial security for first responders and their families after a critical or life-threatening injury occurs while serving their state, county, city, or town. The legislation, sponsored by Senator Cindy F. Friedman (D-Arlington), had been filed for multiple sessions, originally introduced by the late Senator Ken Donnelly when Senator Friedman served as his chief of staff.

“The push for authorizing full disability pensions for first responders violently injured on duty dates back to my time working with and for my predecessor, Senator Ken Donnelly,” said Senator Friedman, Vice Chair of the Senate Committee on Ways and Means. “As a former firefighter, there was no bigger advocate of honoring the service and sacrifice of Massachusetts’ first responders than Ken, and I am honored to have been able to play a role in getting this bill through the Senate, further cementing Ken’s incredible legacy. This legislation will change the lives of first responders and their families in the Commonwealth who have had to suffer through tremendous hardship.” 

The legislation authorizes any employee considered a member-in-service of a retirement board to be eligible for accidental disability retirement if they sustain a catastrophic, life-threatening, or life-altering and permanent bodily injury, and are no longer able to perform their duties.… Read more.

Bill strengthens health care market oversight and imposes guardrails on private equity investments

(BOSTON—7/18/2024) Today the Massachusetts Senate passed urgent reforms to the Commonwealth’s health care system to boost oversight and transparency in the market and improve patient access to prescribed medication and treatment.

Senator Cindy F. Friedman (D-Arlington) took the lead role in developing the Senate’s version of the legislation, which was approved following debate by a vote of 38-2.

The reforms in S.2871 come as Massachusetts continues to manage challenges related to private equity’s mismanagement in health care, which has created uncertainties for patients receiving care and the communities that the healthcare facilities serve. The legislation passed by the Senate would create strong systemic safeguards around private equity in healthcare, a significant step towards preempting future mismanagement.

“The Senate’s comprehensive health care market legislation passed today puts patients and providers back into the focus of the delivery of healthcare, rather than profits,” said Senator Friedman, Senate Chair of the Joint Committee on Health Care Financing. “To ensure that a crisis similar to that surrounding Steward Health Care does not infiltrate our state’s health care system ever again, this bill modernizes and strengthens the health care oversight and transparency tools we have in the Commonwealth. This bill also provides protections for patients and providers, affords our health care regulatory agencies the needed flexibility and scope to oversee the industry as it evolves, and increases the financial transparency of major market players. I thank Senate President Spilka, Chair Rodrigues, and my Senate colleagues for their attention to these issues.… Read more.

Bill is the largest update to gun safety laws since 2014 

*Update: On July 25, 2024, Governor Maura Healey signed this legislation into law. You can view this and other laws signed by Governor Healey here. 

BOSTON – Thursday, July 18, 2024 – The Massachusetts Legislature today passed a firearm safety reform bill that cracks down on the sale of ghost guns, strengthens the Commonwealth’s red flag laws, updates the definition of assault-style firearms, and limits the carrying of guns into polling places and government buildings while updating our current prohibition of guns in schools to include school transport. Senator Cindy F. Friedman (D-Arlington) voted in favor of the legislation in the Massachusetts Senate. 

“In recent years we have been witnesses to a Supreme Court that is hostile towards successful and necessary gun safety policies, which, combined with a drastic rise in gun violence nationwide, has made it impossible for us to avoid taking significant steps to protect residents and law enforcement officers here in Massachusetts,” said Senator Friedman, Vice Chair of the Senate Committee on Ways and Means. “This legislation will implement effective reforms by updating our gun laws to mirror federal definitions and standards and strengthening our red flag laws to better support public safety personnel and those at risk of harm to themselves or others. It will set new standards and guidelines for licensing based on recent court decisions and bring new tools to address the increasing problem of illegal gun and ghost gun possession. I look forward to this legislation becoming law.” … Read more.

Economic development bond authorizations set to enhance state as national leader; Friedman health care workforce amendment adopted 

(BOSTON—7/11/2024) Today, Senator Cindy F. Friedman (D-Arlington) and her colleagues in the Massachusetts Senate unanimously passed a comprehensive economic development bill that makes bold investments in life sciences, climate tech, and small businesses, building on Massachusetts’ national leadership and creating an environment where businesses and workers thrive.  

The $2.86 billion in bonds authorized in An Act Relative to strengthening Massachusetts’ economic leadership will stimulate new and proven industries, support workforce development and talent retention, and modernize economic growth strategies. The support in S.2586 extends to small businesses, communities, and cultural development, ensuring that main street businesses across the Commonwealth benefit from the economic boost.  

“Our economic development legislation directs critical investment to the drivers of the Massachusetts economy, both present and future,” said Senator Friedman, Vice Chair of the Senate Committee on Ways and Means. “This bill provides increased support for our leading industries of climate technology and life sciences, while also paving the way for continued development of our artificial intelligence and advanced manufacturing industries, further elevating Massachusetts on the nationwide and global stage in economic competitiveness. The Senate recognizes the importance of increasing economic opportunity across the Commonwealth and through targeted investments this bill provides for the industries that help define our regions. I am especially grateful to see the inclusion of my amendment that would enter Massachusetts into the Nurse Licensure Compact, as this policy change will be a significant stabilizer for our health care workforce.… Read more.

Senate’s Affordable Homes Act sets course for thousands of new units, sweeping renovations of public and affordable housing, and protections for residents

(BOSTON—06/27/2024) The Massachusetts Senate took action today to address the state’s housing crisis. S.2834, An Act relative to affordable homes—also known as the Affordable Homes Act—authorizes $5.4 billion in borrowing and makes crucial policy changes with the goal of building new housing, accelerating the rehabilitation of existing housing, reducing barriers to development, and promoting affordable housing.

Following robust debate, the Senate passed the legislation unanimously.

“During my tenure in the Senate I have been focused on the health and well-being of our residents — and affordable, safe, and accessible housing is directly linked to that effort,” said Senator Cindy F. Friedman (D-Arlington), Vice Chair of the Senate Committee on Ways and Means. “Housing is interconnected to every other issue that comes before the Legislature, whether it be the stability of our schoolchildren, supporting a sustainable workforce, and ensuring that our state economy thrives. This bill couples dollars with policy reforms to actively respond to the housing crisis we are facing and will impact the Commonwealth for generations to come.”

Senator Friedman was particularly proud that an amendment she filed was adopted, which commissions a study by the Attorney General, in consultation with the Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities, into the practice of corporate landlords colluding to fix high rent prices through the use of algorithmic software. A 2022 investigation by ProPublica found that a real estate tech company used both public and private data in an algorithm that generates rental rate recommendations for landlords.… Read more.