Public Hearing Notice  Notice of Public Hearing

Pursuant to M.G.L. c. 30A § 2 and M.G.L. c. 19A § 6, a public hearing will be held on Wednesday, September 16, 2020, from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. via zoom Join by computer: https://zoom.us/j/99011748284?pwd=ZmQxc3dNZG1wenFiVSszMWtrUlc1dz09 If prompted, enter: Meeting ID: 990 1174 8284 Passcode: EOEA2020 Call-In: +1 646 558 8656 Meeting ID: 990 1174 8284 Passcode: 70333351 Event description: 651 CMR 12.00: Certification Procedures and Standards for Assisted Living Residences EOEA is mandated and authorized under M.G.L. c. 19D to establish processes for the certification and renewal of certification for Applicants and Sponsors of Assisted Living Residences (ALRs). 651 CMR 12.00 sets forth the standards for premises which, in part or in total, constitute an ALR in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and provides penalties for operating such premises without Certification. Emergency regulations were filed on August 5, 2020 to benefit the health, safety, and welfare of ALR residents by: (1) prohibiting infected staff with a contagious disease in communicable form from working at an ALR; (2) requiring ALR staff to be vaccinated for influenza and any novel virus for which a vaccine is available; (3) require that the discovery of infected staff be included in an incident report to be submitted to EOEA; (4) allow ease of document sharing between the ALR Certification Unit and other EOHHS agencies in compliance with M.G.L. c. 66A; and, (5) allow the Secretary of Elder Affairs, in consultation with the Commissioner of the Massachusetts Department of Public Health, to waive certain regulatory provisions in the event of an emergency, thereby enabling timely action to protect the health, safety, and welfare of assisted living residents during an emergency situation. Written testimony and public comment from interested parties may also be submitted. All written submissions must include the sender’s full name and address and be submitted to: Siobhan.coyle@state.ma.us Written testimony may also be submitted to the following address: Executive Office of Elder Affairs One Ashburton Place Boston, MA 02108 Attention: Siobhan Coyle Please submit electronic testimony as an attached MSWord document or .pdf file with the name of the regulation in the subject line. All submissions must include the sender’s full name and address. All written testimony, whether submitted via the Postal Service or electronically, must be received by 5:00 p.m. on September 16, 2020. Reasonable accommodations for people with disabilities are available upon request. Please include a description of the accommodation you will need, including as much detail as you can. Also include a way we can contact you if we need more information. Please allow 72 hours advance notice. Last minute requests will be accepted, but may not be possible to fill. To submit a request for a reasonable accommodation, please e-mail to siobhan.coyle@massmail.state.ma.us or call at (617) 222-7562.