Sen. Pavel Payano

Maddy summaryThis bill prohibits hospitals and certain correctional facilities in Massachusetts from requiring staff to work mandatory overtime, directly affecting registered nurses, support workers, and other healthcare personnel. It defines mandatory overtime as hours worked beyond a pre-agreed schedule of no more than 12 hours in a day and allows such requirements only during genuine emergencies where patient safety is at risk and no other options exist. Facilities must make a good faith effort to fill these gaps voluntarily before mandating overtime, report all instances to state agencies, and ensure staff do not work more than 16 consecutive hours with a required 8-hour break afterward. The law also clarifies that refusing to work beyond these limits cannot result in discrimination or dismissal.

Maddy summaryThis bill requires Massachusetts retailers to use a free, real-time electronic system to track and limit the sale of over-the-counter products containing pseudoephedrine. The system is designed to prevent sales that would exceed federal daily and monthly limits on these substances, which are often used to manufacture methamphetamine. Starting in January 2024, stores must electronically submit purchase data to the state, while also continuing to collect customer identification and maintain logs. The law includes a safety override that allows employees to complete a sale if they fear imminent bodily harm, provided the event is recorded. Retailers who fail to comply with these tracking and reporting requirements face misdemeanor charges and fines.

Maddy summaryThis bill requires public employers in Massachusetts to cover cancer screenings for full-time paid firefighters without charging them any out-of-pocket costs. The screenings must occur at least every three years starting three years after the firefighter begins employment and include tests for various types of cancer such as lung, colon, and prostate cancer. The law applies to firefighters working for state agencies, cities, towns, and specific military and port authority fire departments, ensuring these workers receive regular health checks funded entirely by their employer's health plan.

Maddy summaryThis Massachusetts bill requires health insurance plans to cover full spectrum pregnancy care without deductibles, copayments, or other cost-sharing fees. It applies to most state-regulated plans but allows insurers to charge fees if doing so would cause them to lose their federal tax-exempt status. The legislation also mandates that insurance companies cannot impose unreasonable restrictions or delays on accessing these services. State regulators are tasked with ensuring that all health plans comply with these new coverage requirements.

Maddy summaryThis bill aims to reduce racial and ethnic health disparities by requiring health insurance companies in Massachusetts to pay safety net hospitals at rates comparable to their statewide average. It specifically targets acute care hospitals that treat at least 25% of their patients through Medicaid and serve communities facing health inequities due to race, ethnicity, or socioeconomic status. Under this law, commercial insurance rates are considered presumptively disapproved if they do not reimburse these designated hospitals at or above the carrier's average commercial price for both inpatient and outpatient services. Insurance carriers must annually certify to the state that they are meeting this minimum threshold for each qualifying hospital. The policy takes effect for rate years beginning on or after January 1, 2023.

Maddy summaryThis bill creates a financial incentive program to encourage more MassHealth dental providers to treat patients in specific underserved areas of Massachusetts. It directs the state to offer supplemental payments of $31 per patient visit to licensed dentists and hygienists who treat at least ten additional MassHealth beneficiaries in a year compared to the previous year. These payments are restricted to providers operating in twenty designated municipalities identified as having high enrollment and low dental service usage. The legislation requires the Department of Health and Human Services to establish rules defining eligible locations and to review the payment rate annually.

Maddy summaryThis bill requires that community health centers in Massachusetts receive reimbursement for patient services using a specific payment method known as a prospective payment system. The legislation mandates that this payment methodology must align with federal standards established in the United States Code as of January 1, 2023. By amending state laws regarding insurance and health care financing, the bill ensures that both public programs and private insurers reimburse these centers in a standardized way. The primary goal is to create consistency in how these health centers are paid for the care they provide.

Maddy summaryThis bill proposes to establish a new state system called the Massachusetts Health Care Trust to provide universal health coverage to all residents of the Commonwealth. It creates a new chapter in state law that defines key terms, such as "resident," to explicitly include homeless, incarcerated, and undocumented individuals living in Massachusetts. The legislation declares that access to quality health care is a right for all residents and aims to eliminate out-of-pocket costs like co-payments, deductibles, and co-insurance. By setting up a dedicated trust fund and board of trustees, the bill outlines the structural framework needed to finance and administer this comprehensive health care program.

Maddy summaryThis bill creates a new cost-sharing assistance program in Massachusetts to help people with low incomes pay for their health insurance deductibles, co-pays, and co-insurance. It specifically targets individuals earning up to 500 percent of the federal poverty level who are already enrolled in employer-sponsored health plans. Under the program, eligible applicants would receive supplemental coverage that fills the gap between the costs of their current employer plan and a comparable plan available through the state health insurance connector. The legislation also requires the state health insurance connector authority to evaluate the program's impact on healthcare access and equity, with a final report due by December 1, 2029. Finally, the program is scheduled to begin on January 1, 2026.

Maddy summaryThis bill directs the Commonwealth Health Insurance Connector Authority to run a five-year pilot program that expands health insurance subsidies to individuals earning up to 500 percent of the federal poverty level. Under the plan, people with incomes between 300 and 500 percent of the poverty line would be eligible for coverage plans that meet at least 90 percent of actuarial value, while those below 300 percent would continue to receive existing assistance. The program would be funded using money from the Commonwealth Care Trust Fund and is scheduled to run from January 1, 2024, through December 31, 2028. An independent evaluation will track the program's effects on medical access, costs, and health equity, with results reported to state officials in 2026 and 2029.