Happy Read Across America Week and Belated Birthday Wishes to Dr. Seuss!
Yesterday was the birthday of Western Mass native and beloved children’s book author Theodor Geisel, aka Dr. Seuss. Not coincidentally, yesterday also marked the start of Read Across America week, which always kicks off on Dr. Seuss’s birthday. If you’re like me, you pronounce Seuss to rhyme with “juice,” BUT –
You’re wrong as the deuce
And you shouldn’t rejoice
If you’re calling him Seuss
He pronounces it Soice
By Alexander Laing
Topics for this week’s Health Announce:
- This Wednesday – Day of Action in Solidarity with Immigrant Communities!
- New procurement for MassHealth Ombudsman program.
- New behavioral health treatment and referral platform aimed at reducing ED boarding.
- Updated ACA-3, Application for Health and Dental Coverage and Help Paying Costs.
- Resources to stay on top of executive actions and challenges to those actions.
Be well,
Jennifer Hotchkiss Kaplan
Senior Health Law Attorney
Massachusetts Law Reform Institute
1. This Wednesday – Day of Action in Solidarity with Immigrant Communities!
Join us this Wednesday, March 5, 2025, from 11am – 1pm, at City Hall Plaza, for a Day of Action in support of immigrant rights and a future where all community members are free from fear and isolation. The rally is co-sponsored by MIRA, the ACLU Massachusetts, Boston City Council, and MLRI.
Share information about the rally with the attached flyer.
2. New procurement for MassHealth Ombudsman program.
Last week, MassHealth posted a request for response (RFR) for bids for the MassHealth My Ombudsman program. This program provides accessible support, assistance, and individual advocacy for MassHealth members, their families, caregivers, and advocates to help navigate MassHealth health plans and other MassHealth programs. On top of the direct assistance that the My Ombudsman program provides, it also documents and analyzes data about member issues so that MassHealth can identify trends or patterns and improve the delivery of services for members.
The current My Ombudsman contract is held by the Disability Policy Consortium. A big THANK YOU to those who participated in the listening sessions for My Ombudsman. MassHealth heard you loud and clear and has limited bidders for this RFR to 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations who are independent from entities with financial interests in a health plan contracted by MassHealth.
3. New behavioral health treatment and referral platform aimed at reducing ED boarding.
To help people in a behavioral health crisis who are stuck boarding in hospital emergency departments (ED) get admitted to inpatient psychiatric treatment, EOHHS developed the Expedited Psychiatric Inpatient Admission (EPIA) protocol. Last week, the Behavioral Health Treatment and Referral Platform, a technology platform designed to automate the EPIA protocol, went live. The platform provides real-time information on waitlists at emergency departments and patients’ referral status, as well as electronic transmission of standardized admissions information. All hospitals with EDs and/or inpatient psychiatric units are required to use the Behavioral Health Treatment and Referral Platform.
4. Updated ACA-3, Application for Health and Dental Coverage and Help Paying Costs.
Today, MassHealth issued bulletins to Community Health Centers and Acute Inpatient Hospitals, alerting them to the new Application for Health and Dental Coverage and Help Paying Costs (ACA-3). The updates bring the form into better alignment with the online application, as well as add information about changes to MassHealth’s estate recovery policy, among other changes.
The ACA-3 application packets are for:
- People younger than 65 who do not need long-term-care services, either in a nursing facility or in the community
- Parents of children younger than 19
- Adult relatives living with or taking care of children younger than 19 (regardless of the age of the parent or adult relative) when neither parent is living in the home
Individuals over the age of 65, or individuals of any age who need long-term-care services, should continue to fill out the SACA-2 form, Application for Health Coverage for Seniors and People Needing Long-Term-Care Services.
5. Resources to stay on top of executive actions and challenges to those actions.
It can be overwhelming to try to keep up with developments on the national level. One approach to maintain your equilibrium throughout the day is to moderate your information consumption: instead of reading every news alert that comes across your screen, be selective about when you’ll catch up on the news and from where you’ll get it. Here are some resources to pick from to help keep you informed about executive actions and challenges to government action at your own pace.
