Massachusetts SD 676: An Act improving lives by ensuring access to brain injury treatment

Bill Text

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SENATE DOCKET, NO. 676 FILED ON: 1/15/2019
SENATE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 546

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
_________________
PRESENTED BY:
Harriette L. Chandler
_________________
To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in General
Court assembled:
The undersigned legislators and/or citizens respectfully petition for the adoption of the accompanying bill:
An Act improving lives by ensuring access to brain injury treatment.
_______________
PETITION OF:

NAME: DISTRICT/ADDRESS:
Harriette L. Chandler First Worcester
Kimberly N. Ferguson 1st Worcester
Michael J. Barrett Third Middlesex 1/29/2019
Anne M. Gobi Worcester, Hampden, Hampshire and
Middlesex
1/30/2019
Hannah Kane 11th Worcester 1/30/2019
Michael O. Moore Second Worcester 1/31/2019
Denise Provost 27th Middlesex 2/1/2019
Joan B. Lovely Second Essex 2/1/2019
David Henry Argosky LeBoeuf 17th Worcester 2/4/2019
Colleen M. Garry 36th Middlesex 2/12/2019
José F. Tosado 9th Hampden 2/1/2019
Dylan A. Fernandes Barnstable, Dukes and Nantucket 2/4/2019
David M. Rogers 24th Middlesex 2/15/2019
Sal N. DiDomenico Middlesex and Suffolk 2/15/2019
Christine P. Barber 34th Middlesex 2/15/2019
Dean A. Tran Worcester and Middlesex 2/19/2019
Brendan P. Crighton Third Essex 2/21/2019

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David Biele 4th Suffolk 3/14/2019
Jason M. Lewis Fifth Middlesex 7/16/2019
James B. Eldridge Middlesex and Worcester 7/16/2019
Patrick M. O'Connor Plymouth and Norfolk 8/13/2019
Jack Patrick Lewis 7th Middlesex 8/23/2019

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SENATE DOCKET, NO. 676 FILED ON: 1/15/2019
SENATE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 546
By Ms. Chandler, a petition (accompanied by bill, Senate, No. 546) of Harriette L. Chandler,
Kimberly N. Ferguson, Michael J. Barrett, Anne M. Gobi and other members of the General
Court for legislation relative to cognitive rehabilitation. Financial Services.

[SIMILAR MATTER FILED IN PREVIOUS SESSION
SEE SENATE, NO. 502 OF 2017-2018.]

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

_______________
In the One Hundred and Ninety-First General Court
(2019-2020)
_______________

An Act improving lives by ensuring access to brain injury treatment.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority
of the same, as follows:

1 SECTION 1. Chapter 32A of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2016 Official edition,
2 is hereby amended by inserting after section 17O the following section:-
3 Section 17P. (a) For purposes of this section, the following terms shall have the following
4 meanings:-
5 “Acquired brain injury (ABI)” is any injury to the brain which occurs after birth and can
6 be caused by infectious diseases, metabolic disorders, endocrine disorders or diminished oxygen,
7 brain tumors, toxins, disease that affects the blood supply to the brain, stroke or a traumatic brain
8 injury.

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9 “Cognitive communication therapy” treats problems with communication which have an
10 underlying cause in a cognitive deficit rather than a primary language or speech deficit.
11 “Cognitive rehabilitation therapy (CRT)” is a process of re-learning cognitive skills
12 essential for daily living through the coordinated specialized, integrated therapeutic treatments
13 which are provided in dynamic settings designed for efficient and effective re-learning following
14 damage to brain cells or brain chemistry due to brain injury.
15 “Community reintegration services” provide incremental guided real-world therapeutic
16 training to develop skills essential for an individual to participate in life: to re-enter employment;
17 to go to school and engage in other productive activity; to safely live independently; and to
18 participate in their community while avoiding re-hospitalization and long-term support needs.
19 “Functional rehabilitation therapy and remediation” is a structured approach to
20 rehabilitation for brain disorders which emphasizes learning by doing, and focuses re-learning a
21 specific task in a prescribed format, with maximum opportunity for repeated correct practice.
22 Compensatory strategies are developed for those skills which are persistently impaired and
23 individuals are trained on daily implementation. To ensure acquisition and use, focus is set on re-
24 learning those skills essential for safe daily living in the environment in which they will be used:
25 home and community settings.
26 “Medical necessity” or “medically necessary,” health care services that are consistent
27 with generally accepted principles of professional medical practice.
28 “Neurobehavioral therapy” is a set of medical and therapeutic assessment and treatments
29 focused on behavioral impairments associated with brain disease or injury and the amelioration
30 of these impairments through the development of pro-social behavior.

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31 “Neurocognitive therapy” is treatment of disorders in which the primary clinical deficit is
32 in cognitive function which has not been presen