State Rep. Mathew
Muratore, R-Plymouth, has been named to a legislative task force that will
explore ways to help stabilize the state’s nursing home industry.
In addition to making
recommendations to ensure the financial stability of nursing homes in
Massachusetts, the Skilled Nursing Facilities Task Force will also consider how
these facilities fit within the continuum of elder care services and determine the
best approach for addressing workforce shortages within the industry.
Muratore was appointed
to the task force by House Minority Leader Bradley H. Jones Jr., R-North
Reading, who cited the Plymouth legislator’s nearly three decades of work on
elder care issues. Prior to his 2014 election to the House of Representatives,
Muratore began his career as a nursing home administrator in 1991, and spent 12
years as an administrator at Plymouth Rehabilitation and Health Care Center.
“Matt’s extensive
hands-on experience gives him a unique understanding of the many challenges
facing our state’s nursing homes,” said Jones. “I expect he will play a key
role in helping the task force identify ways to put nursing homes back on a
solid financial footing so that seniors and their families will continue to
have access to a wide range of long-term care options.”
“Nursing homes play a
vital role to residents of the commonwealth by providing options for both
short-term rehab and long-term care,” said Muratore. “I am honored to be asked
to lend my knowledge and experience as a licensed nursing home administrator
for nearly 30 years to the legislative task force and am hopeful that we can
continue to find solutions to assist struggling facilities.”
According to the
Massachusetts Senior Care Association, nearly 150,000 elderly Massachusetts
residents currently live in nursing homes, which employ about 77,000 workers in
the commonwealth. Between 2016 and 2019, 24 nursing homes in the state closed
their doors, and the MSCA has warned that dozens more are at risk of closure
due to the lack of funding and workforce shortages.
Created as part of the
Fiscal Year 2020 state budget, the 15-member task force will be chaired by
Health and Human Services secretary Marylou Sudders. Other members serving on
the task force include the House and Senate chairs of the Joint Committee on
Elder Affairs; the secretary of elder affairs; the secretary of labor and
workforce development; the commissioner and public health; the assistant
secretary for MassHealth; and representatives from the MSCA, LeadingAge
Massachusetts Inc., 1199SEIU, the Massachusetts ASsociation of Residential Care
Homes Inc., and the Massachusetts Senior Action Council Inc.
The task force will
file a report on its findings and recommendations by Feb. 1.
