RIGHTS OF MASSACHUSETTS
NURSING HOME RESIDENTS
When you move to a nursing home,
you take your rights with you.
You have a right to . . .
- choose your own attending
physician and pharmacy
- refuse treatment
- make your own decisions about
medical care
- be informed in advance of changes in
your care or treatment
- be free from physical or
chemical restraints, except in emergencies.
- restraints
may be used only to ensure the physical safety
of you or other residents and only after a physician's
written order that tells why and for how
long restraints may be used.
The facility must . . .
- report an alleged violation involving your treatment
to the appropriate officials
- investigate all alleged
violations and report the results of the investigation
You have a right to . . .
- privacy when meeting with your doctor, family, friends
or resident groups
- send and receive mail that is unopened
- a private
place to make and receive phone calls
- confidential
personal and medical records
- see your personal and
medical records within 24 hours upon request
- prevent
release of your personal records without written
permission from you or your authorized representative
- share the same room with your husband or wife if
you both reside in the same facility
- reasonable accommodation
of your personal needs and preferences, including
the right to plan your own daily activities, wear your
own clothes, and keep and use your own furniture
and belongings as space allows
- present grievances
to staff, state officials or the ombudsperson without
reprisal or discrimination
You may be transferred or discharged only . . .
- if necessary for the health or safety of you or
other residents
- for nonpayment
- if you no longer require the services
of the facility, OR
- if the facility closes
You have a right to . . .
- receive 30 days' advance written notice of any transfer
or discharge, except in emergency situations
- receive
48 hours' advance notice before a change of roommate
- appeal any transfer or discharge to a State agency
- receive advance notice of the facility's policy
for holding a resident's bed before any transfer for
hospitalization or therapeutic leave
- refuse to be
transferred from a "Medicare-certified
bed" to
a "non-Medicare certified bed" and vice versa
- have
the nursing home hold your bed for up to 10 days if the length
of hospitalization or leave is estimated to be 10 days or
less, and the right to the next available bed if a
hospital stay lasts longer than 10 days
You have a right to . . .
- manage your own finances unless a guardian or conservator
has been appointed for you, and the facility may not
require you to deposit funds with the facility
The facility must . . .
- hold, safeguard and account for your personal funds
if you give written authority
! deposit personal funds in excess of $50 in a separate interest-bearing
account and provide you with a complete accounting of all transactions
involving your funds
You have the right to . . .
- be free from verbal, mental, physical or sexual abuse,
corporal punishment or involuntary seclusion
The facility must . . .
- implement procedures that protect you from abuse,
neglect or mistreatment and misappropriation of your
property
You have the right to . . .
- be informed both orally and in writing at the time
of your admission of your rights during your stay
at the facility
- be informed both orally and in writing
at the time of your admission of the procedures for
establishing MassHealth eligibility
The facility must . . .
- have the same policies and practices of transfer,
discharge and provision of services for all residents,
regardless of source of payment.
The facility must not . . .
- treat people differently because MassHealth or Medicare
pays for their care
- require you to have a guardian
or to appoint a power of attorney as a condition
of admission
- require a third party guarantee of payment
or accept gifts as a condition for admission or further
stay
- require you to waive your right to apply for
or receive MassHealth or Medicare
The facility may . . .
- require individuals who have legal access to your
income or resources to sign a contract (without themselves
incurring personal liability) to provide payment from
your income or resources.
Many of the rights listed above are further protected
by the Massachusetts consumer protection laws. Under
consumer protection regulations, violations may subject
the facility to liability for multiple damages and attorneys'
fees.
You may wish to report your concerns or problems as
a nursing home resident to the Ombudsman Program at (617)
727-7750.
