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(WWLP- Ellen Fleming) A birthday celebration of sorts was held at the State House Wednesday. Memorial Hall was packed for the 387th anniversary of the country’s first National Guard regiment.

On this day in 1636, the first militia regiments in North America formed in the Commonwealth. The militia was organized into regiments, three which became the Massachusetts Army National Guard. The Guard has fought in all of the nation’s major wars, and currently fights in Iraq and Afghanistan. The guard also has boots on the ground in Massachusetts currently assisting with the migrant crisis.

State Senator John Velis of Westfield, a Major in the National Guard, was acknowledged by Governor Maura Healey during the ceremony for his work with those in emergency shelters.

“Just look what they do, right? Civil unrest, helping out, giving people shots. I mean, driving busses, currently the migrant stuff. Just a lot of different things, that’s in addition to going to war, so really happy to be proud of it, it’s where I’m from, I love this state. Now to be apart of the National Guard, it’s moving,” said Senator Velis.

The Governor and Commander in Chief of the National Guard spoke Wednesday on the importance of the work they do everyday serving our country.

“We call upon you, this country calls upon you, this state calls upon you, and we need you, to do so many things, and you always rise to the challenge,” said Governor Healey.

The event ended with Major General Gary W. Keefe, alongside the youngest and oldest serving National Guard member cutting a birthday cake with a ceremonial sword.

Awards were also given out, and Colonel David Halaski-Kun was honored for saving a woman’s life on the Mass Pike in Chicopee. Colonel Halaski-Kun is the Wing Commander of the 104th Fighter Wing at Barnes Air National Guard Base in Westfield.

Bill passes shortly after being received from House, clears way for funding of emergency shelter aid and worker contracts 

BOSTON (12/05/2023) – Yesterday, the Massachusetts Senate took final action on a supplemental budget designed to close out Fiscal Year 2023. The Senate’s supplemental budget totals $3.1 billion and contains several provisions to support the ongoing operations of programs and services that benefit the residents of the Commonwealth.  

To address the ongoing humanitarian emergency shelter crisis, the final bill allocates $250 million to be spent to address costs associated with sheltering eligible families, including by making funding available for temporary emergency shelter sites for families on a waitlist for permanent shelter.  The final bill also stipulates that a portion of the $250 million be spent on support services and resources so that individuals and families can address the complex issues and challenges they face, as well as reimbursements to school districts for increased enrollment costs associated with an influx of migrant students. 

To ensure oversight of spending on the emergency shelter crisis, the bill requires robust reporting every 14 days. In addition to $250 million for the emergency shelter system, the budget provides $10 million for resettlement agencies to assist immigrants and refugees and authorizes the use of up to $2 million in available funds from the Workforce Competitiveness Trust Fund to support career centers in their efforts to assist immigrants and refugees in securing federal work authorizations. 

“The Senate understands how much of an impact our work has on the residents of the Commonwealth—especially when pay raises for hard-working employees and funding for emergency shelter is on the line,” stated Senate President Karen E. Spilka (D-Ashland). “I’m proud of the urgency the Senate has repeatedly shown in getting this bill to the Governor’s desk, and I’d like to thank all of my colleagues in the Senate for getting this done, especially Senate Ways and Means Chair Rodrigues and Senate Minority Leader Tarr.” 

“The Senate again acted swiftly and decisively to close the books and pass the closeout supplemental budget for Fiscal Year 2023. With $250 million in emergency funding, we met the challenge of an unprecedented humanitarian crisis head-on. We also allocated $378 million to fully fund over 90 collective bargaining agreements (CBAs) for state workers, absolved a $100 million pension liability from the 2015 Early Retirement Incentive Program, and dedicated substantial funding to special education and disaster relief for municipalities across the Commonwealth,” said State Senator Michael J. Rodrigues (D-Westport), Chair of the Senate Committee on Ways and Means. “This would not have been possible without the hard work of the Senate Ways and Means staff, and the Senate conference committee conferees. I would like to thank my Senate colleagues, whose invaluable input and counsel always guided our revenue discussions. I would also like to thank Minority Leader Tarr, whose viewpoint I always respect; but especially Senate President Spilka, for her continued steadfast and compassionate leadership through these ever-changing times.” 

“Yesterday, I joined many of my colleagues at the State House in passing the FY’23 closeout supplemental budget and sending it to the Governor’s desk without further delay. This spending package includes critical funding for initiatives throughout the Commonwealth, including the authorization of contracts for many hard-working state employees.” shared Senator John C. Velis (D- Westfield) “With additional and important funding allocated for our Commonwealth’s emergency shelter system, I look forward to continuing the conversation and review of our shelter program.” 

Other notable items in the closeout supplemental budget include: $378 million to fund collective bargaining increases for state workers; $75 million for school districts impacted by special education tuition rate increases; $15 million for disaster relief for municipalities impacted by storms and natural disasters that occurred in 2023; and a supplemental $100 million pension payment to remove any further increased liability resulting from the 2015 early retirement incentive program. The largest spending item in the bill was related to health care costs provided through MassHealth. 

A version of this supplemental budget having passed the House and Senate, it was sent to the Governor on Monday, December 4, 2023, and signed the same day. 

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(Daily Hampshire Gazette- Maddie Fabien) In response to the youth mental health crisis, as many experts have called it, the Public Health Institute of Western Massachusetts has worked with over 25 organizations and many stakeholders on a regional roadmap designed to get youth the help they need.

The roadmap, which was presented at a well-attended UMass Amherst forum in November, focuses on the prevention of mental health conditions as well as the promotion of mental health wellness. Its authors also throw their support behind several pieces of legislation currently before the Legislature designed to address the crisis.

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“This pain is being felt universally throughout my district and beyond,” said state Sen. John Velis, co-chair of the Joint Committee on Mental Health, Substance Use & Recovery.

“We need to have a very holistic approach to this; it needs to be school-based behavioral health, it needs to be increasing the number of beds that are out there for inpatient psychiatric beds,” Velis said. “But 90% of our kids are in the Massachusetts public schools, so [schools are] a good place for us to invest some significant resources.”

One bill before the committee would establish a child and adolescent behavioral health implementation coordinating council, which would create a three-year plan to establish a statewide school-based system.

Velis said the largest concern and area of opportunity in the bill is to “make sure that we’re not going in with a broad brush and saying… we know what is best for the entirety of kids in Massachusetts.”

“It needs to be very specific and individually-based based on the communities in question,” he said, adding that even between communities like Easthampton and Holyoke, which border one another, the needs of students differ.

Another proposed bill would allow schools to seek reimbursement for Medicaid-covered services, which would support school health programming and services.

The report also recommends a bill that would update the physical education mandate in grades K-12 to make mental health education a learning requirement in all public and private Massachusetts schools.

The bill does not mandate any specific curriculum, but rather aims to provide students with a holistic understanding of health that recognizes the relationship between physical and mental health.

“The research shows that early interventions work, so if we can get kids when they’re younger, the hope is that we might be able to get them the help that they need to prevent some of those downstream manifestations of these behavioral health concerns,” Velis said.

FULL ARTICLE

Bill continues Senate’s work to lower prescription drug costs,  
promote transparency, and increase patient access  

BOSTON (11/15/2023) — Today, the Massachusetts Senate unanimously passed the bipartisan Act Relative to Pharmaceutical Access, Costs, and Transparency, otherwise known as the PACT Act 3.0. The legislation would make urgent and much-needed reforms to the pharmaceutical system in the state by lowering the cost of drugs at the pharmacy counter and improving oversight of the pharmaceutical industry.  

It also takes firm steps to create more equitable access to life-saving medications by providing a free, no-cost sharing option for certain drugs used to treat chronic illnesses that disproportionately affect people of color. 

“Relief from prescription drug costs can’t wait when lives are at stake,” said Senate President Karen E. Spilka (D-Ashland). “I look forward to this bill getting signed into law so that residents and seniors who go to the pharmacy counter will finally pay less for the medications they use to stay alive and maintain their quality of life. This reform is in line with the Senate’s commitment to addressing affordability, equity, and transparency, and maintaining the Commonwealth’s competitiveness as a place to live and work. I am extremely grateful for the diligent and tireless work of Senator Friedman and Chair Rodrigues for their leadership on this bill, and to the rest of my colleagues in the Senate for their strong support.” 

“I am pleased the Senate has passed this crucial prescription drug legislation,” said Senator Michael J. Rodrigues (D-Westport), Chair of the Senate Committee on Ways and Means. “Healthcare is all about accessibility and affordability, and this reform-minded consumer focused bill will allow increased access to prescription drugs while also considerably driving down the cost of everyday medications. I thank Senator Friedman for her leadership on this and many healthcare issues as this bill will literally save lives.” 

“Massachusetts often serves as a national leader, providing ground-breaking health care services and fostering innovative breakthroughs for our biotech and life sciences sector, but everyday residents of our Commonwealth are being priced out of essential and life-saving medications,” said Senator Cindy F. Friedman (D-Arlington), Senate chair of the Joint Committee on Health Care Financing. “This bill begins to meet the urgency of this challenge by eliminating cost-sharing for generic drugs and capping out-of-pocket costs for brand name drugs used to treat insulin, asthma, and the most prevalent heart conditions. In addition, this legislation will provide much needed relief for certain high-cost drugs, improve patient access to medications and pharmacies of their choice, and enhance transparency and oversight within the pharmaceutical industry. I thank President Spilka, Chair Rodrigues, my Senate colleagues and the many stakeholders who helped to craft and improve this pressing legislation. Massachusetts deserves a health care system that delivers affordable, high quality and accessible care to all our residents and this bill brings us one step closer to that goal—I hope this is the year we can get this bill signed into law.”  

“I often hear from seniors and families who are living on fixed incomes about the dramatic price increases of their medications and the difficult decisions they must make between refilling their prescriptions and putting food on the table.” shared Senator John Velis (D-Westfield) “I am proud to be a member of the Senate which has continuously prioritized driving down these costs and expanding the accessibility of everyday and essential medications for our residents.” 

By connecting the need for greater drug price transparency with policies to improve oversight for the pharmaceutical industry, the PACT Act 3.0 puts the Senate at the forefront of the state’s efforts to tackle rapidly increasing prescription drug costs. It will also reduce drug costs for patients and lower health care costs overall.  

Lowering costs for life-saving medications 

Far too often, patients cannot access the medications they need due to high prescription drug prices. This legislation takes a step towards addressing this by offering immediate price relief and limiting out-of-pocket spending for prescription drugs used to treat diabetes, asthma, and chronic heart conditions, all of which disproportionately affect black and brown residents of Massachusetts.  

For each of the chronic conditions identified, the bill requires insurers to eliminate deductibles and cost-sharing requirements for one generic drug and to cap co-payments on one brand-name drug at $25 per 30-day supply. Capping the costs of these medications will help improve access and reduce the financial burden of prescriptions, which far too often causes the dangerous practice of rationing life-saving drugs. 

To make sure patients pay the lowest possible cost at the pharmacy counter, the PACT Act 3.0 also ensures that a patient purchasing a prescription drug is not charged a cost-sharing amount, such as a co-pay, if it would be cheaper for them to purchase the drug without using their insurance. 

Ensuring patients can use their preferred pharmacy 

The bill takes significant steps toward ensuring that patients can get their prescription drugs from the pharmacy that they choose. This bill will allow independent pharmacists the opportunity to become licensed to dispense specialty medications, and allow any network pharmacy to contract with carriers to provide mail-order prescriptions, changing the current practice of carriers determining what pharmacies are available to patients for mail-order prescriptions. 

Holding drug companies accountable  

The PACT Act 3.0 contains enhanced accountability tools to address rising costs of medications and other barriers to care. Currently, Massachusetts cannot effectively identify the drugs that have burdensome costs. These cost barriers also contribute to unaddressed health issues and often worsen conditions. To combat this, the bill directs the Health Policy Commission (HPC), in consultation with stakeholders, to establish a process for identifying high drug prices that create access barriers to essential medicines that address the priority health care needs of residents of the Commonwealth. In addition, it allows the HPC to recommend pricing measures to increase patient access to necessary medications.  

Pharmaceutical manufacturers that fail to comply with this process will be required to pay a fee that will go into a trust fund for a new drug cost assistance program to support patients with certain chronic health conditions that disproportionately impact communities of color and low-income communities. 

To help control costs further, the PACT Act 3.0 requires pharmaceutical manufacturers to notify the state in advance of new drugs coming to market, and of significant price increases for existing drugs. With advanced notification, the state’s MassHealth program can better prepare for potential cost increases by exploring ways to mitigate the cost or negotiating improved prices.  

In addition, advance notification will enable the HPC to focus on these cost drivers at their Cost Trends Hearings, which are held each year to examine the drivers of health care costs; identify challenges and opportunities for improving care and reducing costs in Massachusetts; increase transparency and accountability for health care providers and insurers; and help the state to meet its annual health care cost growth benchmark. 

This bill also empowers the Center for Health Information and Analysis (CHIA), an independent state agency that provides objective analysis of the quality, affordability, utilization, and access to the Massachusetts health care system, to collect a range of drug cost information from pharmaceutical manufacturers and pharmacy benefit managers to include in its annual health care cost report, which does not currently include comprehensive data on drug costs. Collecting this data will allow policymakers and consumers to better understand the role of pharmaceutical manufacturers in driving health care costs moving forward. 

Pharmacy Benefit Manager (PBM) Oversight  

To address another potential cost driver, the bill brings oversight to pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs), which play a major role in determining how prescription drugs are tiered and priced on insurance plans. PBMs serve as middlemen between prescription drug buyers and sellers and currently operate with little oversight, making it unclear if they act in the best interest of consumers or health plans when they negotiate the price of drugs with pharmaceutical manufacturers. The PACT Act 3.0 authorizes the Division of Insurance (DOI) to provide much-needed oversight by licensing and regulating PBMs—and establishing sanctions for PBMs that fail to meet certain standards.  

Additionally, pharmaceutical manufacturers and PBMs will be included in the HPC’s annual Cost Trends Hearings for the first time. By participating in the hearings process, pharmaceutical manufacturers and PBMs will be required to provide public testimony on the factors that influence drug costs and provide documentation to back up their claims. HPC will use this information to analyze how pharmaceutical industry costs impact the state’s health care market—and the ultimate cost of health care for Massachusetts residents. 

The bill has also gained support from leading advocates for healthcare access.  

In a statement, the Health Equity Compact praised the legislation, saying, “The Health Equity Compact commends the Senate for including provisions to address the increasing cost burden of certain medications for chronic conditions in An Act Relative to Pharmaceutical Access, Costs and Transparency. Providing affordable medications for diabetes, asthma, and heart conditions is an important step toward addressing health inequities, and these provisions are also included in the health equity omnibus bill which would pave the way for the next chapter of health reform. We thank the Senate President and Senator Friedman for their work to address health disparities in the Commonwealth and look forward to continued partnership with our legislative colleagues.” 

“The cost of prescription drugs has risen rapidly, putting critical medications out of reach for many,” said Amy Rosenthal, Executive Director of Health Care For All. “This legislation will ensure thousands of residents are able to better afford the necessary medications to manage their diabetes, asthma and heart conditions, and bring transparency and accountability to the drug industry through the state’s cost trends process.” 

During the debate, the Senate adopted an amendment from Senator Pavel Payano (D-Lawrence) to ensure that safety net hospitals and federally qualified community health centers can purchase discounted drugs from drug manufacturers through the federal 340B program. This program helps to keep costs low for patients who are served by hospitals in vulnerable communities. 

Furthermore, the Senate adopted an amendment from Senator Cynthia Creem (D-Newton) that directs a study whether the state should adopt a statewide policy requiring schools, police stations, and fire stations to maintain a supply of epinephrine injectors on hand, to support students and residents in need. The Senate has been a leader in putting forth policies that address unaffordable drug costs. The HEALTH Act, passed by the Senate in 2017, proposed policies to incorporate pharmaceutical costs into the state’s annual health care cost oversight process and ensure that consumers are offered the lowest available prices at the pharmacy.  

The Senate also championed the inclusion of provisions in the Fiscal Year 2020 budget to allow MassHealth to directly negotiate supplemental drug rebates to save the state millions of dollars each year. 

Today’s passage marks the third consecutive session that the Senate has passed legislation to rein in drug costs and reform the pharmaceutical system, as drug costs have continued to climb higher with each passing year. 

The PACT Act 3.0 now moves to the Massachusetts House of Representatives for consideration. 

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BOSTON (11/15/2023) – Yesterday, the Massachusetts Senate passed a supplemental budget designed to close out Fiscal Year 2023. The Senate’s supplemental budget totals $2.81 billion and contains several provisions to support the ongoing operations of programs and services that benefit the residents of the Commonwealth. The spending bill also includes $250 million to address the pressing issue of emergency housing. 

On emergency housing, the Senate’s supplement budget stipulates that a portion of the $250 million be spent on community-based, broad and individualized support services and resources so that individuals and families can address the complex issues and challenges they face, as well as reimbursements to school districts for increased enrollment costs associated with an influx of migrant students. It also authorizes a portion of the $250 million to be spent to address costs associated with sheltering eligible families, as well as creating temporary emergency shelter sites.  

“The term Commonwealth—‘common wealth’—reminds us that we have a responsibility to care for each other—and that is never more true than when we are facing difficult times,” stated Senate President Karen E. Spilka (D-Ashland). “The Commonwealth must work with a sense of urgency to help those who seek shelter, whether they be long-time residents or immigrant families fleeing violence, and I’m proud of the steps that this supplemental budget takes to provide that help. I’d like to thank Senator Rodrigues for his leadership, as well as all of my colleagues in the Senate for their work on this budget.”  

In a bipartisan amendment, sponsored by Senator John Velis, that the Senate unanimously adopted on the floor, the final spending bill creates a bipartisan commission consisting of members from the Healey Administration, the legislature, and experts within the field of housing and immigration to study and make recommendations by March 1^st on the financial impact and sustainability of the Commonwealth’s current emergency shelter system and the various supports that are currently offered to individuals and families. 

“Our state’s emergency shelter program was simply never meant to handle the number of individuals that it is housing today, we need to take a hard look at the financial stability of our emergency housing assistance program, and the impact it is having on our municipalities and Commonwealth as a whole. Otherwise, we will soon be faced with some very difficult decisions on other funding priorities that we value so much.” shared Senator John C. Velis (D-Westfield) “In the absence of federal action, we need to have an honest conversation about these growing costs and what our off-ramp, if any, is going to be. I am grateful for the bipartisan support to get this work started and I am especially grateful to Senate President Spilka and Chair Rodrigues for their work on this package that will make critical investments in many other important areas for our Commonwealth.” 

To ensure oversight of the spending on the emergency shelter crisis through Fiscal Year 2025, the Senate bill requires robust reporting every 14 days. In addition to $250 million, this budget provides $10 million for resettlement agencies to assist immigrants and refugees and authorizes the use of up to $2 million in available funds from the Workforce Competitiveness Trust Fund to support career centers in their efforts to assist immigrants and refugees secure federal work authorizations.  

“Today the Senate took a bold step forward, and passed a supplemental budget that not only closes the books on Fiscal Year 2023, but also acts swiftly to meet the challenges of an unprecedented humanitarian crisis that deserves our full attention, care, and assistance,” said State Senator Michael J. Rodrigues (D-Westport), Chair of the Senate Committee on Ways and Means. “In addition, we allocated $378 million to fully fund all ratified Collective Bargaining Agreements (CBA), dedicated $15 million for climate change disaster relief, and deposited $100 million to fully pay down the pension liability from the 2015 Early Retirement Incentive Program. I would like to thank my Senate colleagues for their thoughtful input to this closeout budget, and especially thank Senate President Spilka, for her steadfast and compassionate leadership through these ever-changing times.” 

 Other notable items in the closeout supplemental budget include $75 million for school districts impacted by special education tuition rate increases; $15 million for disaster relief for municipalities impacted by storms and naturals disasters that occurred in 2023; funding to support collective bargaining agreements; $500,000 for the Commission on Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer and Questioning Youth; and a provision designed to allow for the building of a soccer stadium in Everett. 

A version of this supplemental budget having been passed in the House; it must now be reconciled by the branches.  

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