Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey announced Monday a package of safety reforms for the state’s assisted living facilities, including mandatory annual fire-department inspections and evacuation drills, following a fire last summer that killed 10 residents at a Fall River facility — the state’s deadliest blaze in more than 40 years.
The measures, drawn from a report by the state’s Assisted Living Residents Commission, also call for a public database of facility compliance records and a task force on affordability, responding to longstanding regulatory gaps that the Gabriel House fire exposed.
Massachusetts is enacting a series of safety reforms at assisted living facilities following a fire last summer that killed 10 residents at a Fall River facility — the state’s deadliest blaze in more than 40 years — Gov. Maura Healey announced Monday.
The reforms, drawn from a report by the state’s Assisted Living Residents Commission, require annual inspections jointly signed off by local fire departments, boards of health, and building inspectors. Facilities must also conduct annual reviews of emergency plans, quarterly emergency exercises with all staff, and annual evacuation drills.
“Every older adult deserves a safe home and peace of mind, and every family deserves transparency and accountability,” Healey said in a statement. “The heartbreaking tragedy at Gabriel House showed us that we cannot wait to strengthen protections for assisted living residents.”
Transparency and affordability measures
The commission’s report calls for creating a statewide online database where families can access compliance records, ownership information, and corrective action plans. It also calls for standardizing information on services, costs, staffing, and resident rights so families can more easily compare different facilities.
An additional recommendation would establish a task force to study the affordability of assisted living, amid concerns that costs place such facilities out of reach for many low-income residents.
Robin Lipson, the state’s Aging and Independence Secretary and chair of the commission, said the changes would make the sector more transparent and accountable.
“These changes will strengthen fire safety, clarify standards and practices that impact resident well-being, and make critical information more accessible so families can make informed decisions,” Lipson said. “We have already begun putting stronger protections in place and will work to ensure that residents across the Commonwealth are safer, better supported, and treated with the dignity they deserve.”
Gabriel House fire and regulatory history
The Gabriel House fire, which investigators said began unintentionally by either someone smoking or an electrical issue with an oxygen machine, left some residents of the three-story building hanging out of windows and screaming for help.
Documents from the state Executive Office of Aging and Independence showed Gabriel House had lost its certification nearly a decade before the fire due to resident mistreatment. The facility was barred from accepting new residents until it took corrective action.
State records include about two dozen complaints about Gabriel House over the preceding decade, including several related to “abuse, neglect or financial exploitation,” though details in many complaints are redacted. Other complaints involved a resident getting stuck in an elevator that was then out of service for months, and staff members who threatened residents and withheld medication.
A resident also filed a lawsuit alleging the facility was not properly managed, staffed, or maintained and that “emergency response procedures were not put in place.” The son of another resident said an elevator had been out of service for as long as nine months at one point.
The Assisted Living Residents Commission was already studying the sector when the fire broke out.
Industry response
Brian Doherty, president and CEO of the Massachusetts Assisted Living Association, said his nonprofit welcomed the report, particularly recommendations to develop a standardized resident assessment, integrate Certified Medication Aides into assisted living, and establish an affordability task force.
“Assisted living blends social activity with personal care, and we will continue to champion a model of diverse community options over restrictive, institutionalized settings to ensure residents maintain their independence and dignity,” Doherty said.