Press Release
From the Office of
State Representative
Gale D. Candaras

DATE: May 2, 2001
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, CONTACT:
Barbara Campanella at (413) 782-1630 (office) (413) 264-1096 (beeper) or
Stephen Roulier at (413) 782-1520 (office) (413) 735-7386 (beeper)

LEGISLATIVE INSTITUTE AT WESTERN NEW ENGLAND COLLEGE SCHOOL OF LAW TO HOST PUBLIC HEARING BY MASSACHUSETTS LEGISLATIVE JOINT COMMITTEE ON HEALTH CARE

Springfield – The Institute for Legislation and Government Affairs at the Western New England College School of Law will host a public hearing by the Legislature’s Joint Committee on Health Care on May 14, 2001 from Noon to 5:00 pm in Room A of the S. Prestley Blake Law Center. The event is open to the public.

The Health Care Committee will hear testimony on legislation relating to the staffing levels of health care facilities and the current state of the health care workforce. Representative Harriett L. Stanley, House Chair of the Health Care Committee states, "Many people have asked why we're traveling all the way to Springfield for a Health Care hearing. The reason is that health care doesn't come from Boston."

State Representative Gale D. Candaras (D-Wilbraham), an advocate for improving the quality of care of residents in nursing facilities and upgrading the conditions of the health care workforce, was instrumental in coordinating the event at the WNEC School of Law’s Institute. “I am pleased that the Health Care Committee will be holding hearings at the Law School on May 14th,” Candaras noted. “At a time when quality health care for seniors is on everyone’s agenda, hearings on these bills are essential. Recent events regarding the quality of care for the elderly in Western Massachusetts only underscore the need for these hearings in Springfield. I wish to thank Co-chairs Representative Harriet L. Stanley (D-West Newbury) and Senator Richard T. Moore (D-Uxbridge) for bringing the Committee here. As Speaker of the House Thomas M. Finneran has noted, the Legislature needs to be visible in all parts of the Commonwealth,” Candaras concluded.

WNEC School of Law’s Institute for Legislation and Government Affairs was established in the spring of 2000. Its purpose was to provide opportunities to its students to participate in activities relating to the legislative process. One of the Institute’s goals was to bring live action policy making to Western Massachusetts by hosting Legislative Committee hearings. “One of the goals of the Legislative Institute is to bring committees of the General Court here to Western Massachusetts,” stated Professor Art Wolf, Director of the School of Law’s Institute for Legislation and Government Affairs. “Holding legislative hearings in Springfield gives our students and other residents of the four counties in Western Massachusetts the opportunity to observe the workings of our Legislature and to participate as witnesses in the hearings. The presence of the Committee also gives area voters and residents, together with our students, the chance to meet and speak with members of the Legislature,” Director Wolf observed.

Other legislative members appointed to the Joint Committee on Health Care are Senator Marc R. Pacheco, Vice Chair, (D-Taunton); Senator Therese Murray (D-Plymouth); Senator Susan C. Fargo (D-Lincoln); Senator Harriette L. Chandler (D-Worcester); Senator Bruce E. Tarr (R-Gloucester); Representative Peter J. Koutoujian (D-Newton); Representative Christine E. Canavan (D-Brockton); Representative William M. Straus (D-Mattapoisett); Representative James E. Vallee (D-Franklin); Representative Rachel Kaprielian (D-Watertown); Representative John A. Hart, Jr. (D-South Boston); Representative Kathleen M. Teahan (D-Whitman); Representative Martin J. Walsh (D-Dorchester); Representative Shirley A. Gomes (R-Harwich); Representative Carol C. Cleven (R-Chelmsford).

The following bills are scheduled to be heard during the May 14th public hearing at the WNEC School of Law’s Institute:

SENATE 480 “An Act Requiring Nursing Homes To Maintain Safe Staffing Levels To Protect The Health And Safety Of Residents.”

SENATE 542 “An Act Requiring Nursing Homes To Maintain Safe Staffing Levels To Protect The Health And Safety Of Residents.”

SENATE 579 “An Act To Require Nursing Home Corporations Operating Within The Commonwealth To Maintain Safe Staffing Levels.”

HOUSE 1593 “An Act Requiring Nursing Homes To Maintain Safe Staffing Levels To Protect The Health And Safety Of Residents.”

HOUSE 1186 “An Act Relative To Sufficient Nurse Staffing To Ensure Safe Patient Care.”

SENATE 482 “An Act To Establish A Health Care Labor Shortage Task Force.”

SENATE 564 “An Act Creating A Special Task Force To Make An Investigation And Study On Issues Related To The Health Care Workforce.”

SENATE 558 “An Act Establishing The Direct Care Workers Insurance Assistance Program.”

Western New England College is a private, independent, coeducational institution found in 1919. Located on an attractive 215-acre suburban campus in Springfield, Massachusetts, the College serves 5,000 students on its main campus and at 18 sites throughout the Commonwealth. Undergraduate and graduate programs are offered through the College’s Schools of Arts and Sciences, Business, Engineering, and Law.