Sen. Kelly Applauds New CT Laws to Improve Elder Care

Watch Sen. Kelly’s remarks here.

Sen. Kevin Kelly, the former co-chair of the legislature’s Aging Committee and an elder law attorney, attended a June 4 ceremony at Seabury Retirement Community in Bloomfield where the governor signed a pair of bipartisan elder-care bills into law.

“These new laws make sure the voice of seniors is heard,” said Sen. Kelly. “Whenever I ask seniors the question, ‘Does anyone want to go to a nursing home?’, the answer I almost always get is a resounding ‘no’. So, if people don’t want to enter nursing homes, and it’s less expensive to stay home, and there are better health outcomes from staying home, we must pass policies which help seniors age in place. This is what our seniors would expect us to do. I thank the governor, members of the Aging Committee and my legislative colleagues for getting these bills to the finish line and making sure the voices of seniors are heard.”

The new law includes a regulatory presumption of Medicaid eligibility for people who remain in their homes but need outside help; a concept championed by Senator Kelly.

“We worked for more than a decade to get presumptive eligibility passed,” Sen. Kelly said. “Our persistence has finally paid off. And we must continue to be persistent, because these issues mean so much to our seniors. Whenever our nation has asked them to sacrifice, they’ve done it. Now, it’s our job as state lawmakers to make aging in place work for them.”

Additionally, the new laws will:

• enhance transparency and provide critical information on care quality across nursing homes, empowering informed decision-making
• increase financial protections by offering clearer disclosures regarding fees in Managed Residential Communities, safeguarding against unforeseen expenses. improve living conditions by phasing out multi-occupancy rooms
• recognize and reward nursing homes that exemplify high-quality, person-centered care
• increase accountability by strengthening oversight on facility management practices

Photos above:
Sen. Kevin Kelly addresses attendees at a June 4 ceremony in which aging-in-place and nursing home transparency bills were signed into law by the governor. Sen. Kelly, the former co-chair of the Aging Committee, was a strong supporter of both bills.