Hebrew SeniorLife Included in New Massachusetts Senior Housing Commission

Hebrew SeniorLife has been included as a member of a new Commonwealth of Massachusetts special commission established by House Bill 4977, the Affordable Homes Act, that will make recommendations on creating affordable and healthy senior housing.

“Hebrew SeniorLife is pleased to join with fellow commission members who will be a very active part of the solution to address the need for more critically important affordable housing benefitting the Commonwealth’s older residents,” said Hebrew SeniorLife President and Chief Executive Officer Louis J. Woolf.

Hebrew SeniorLife’s Executive Vice President for Senior Living Kim Brooks and Vice President of Real Estate Deb Morse attended the bill signing ceremony on August 6 with Governor Maura Healey, Lieutenant Governor Kim Driscoll, Secretary of Housing and Livable Communities Ed Augustus, other members of the Healey-Driscoll Administration, members of the legislature, and housing advocates and providers.

“Hebrew SeniorLife is deeply supportive of the creation of the commission focused on older residents, healthy aging, and the importance of aligning housing, home care, and health care policies and programs,” said Brooks.

The commission’s recommendations will:

• Identify best practices for creating supportive senior housing with sustainable funding.
• Determine strategies for connecting and streamlining services supporting older adults in their community, including identifying federal waivers or other actions to support the integration of such services.
• Identify partners to create opportunities for supportive housing development that incorporates health care infrastructure and services.
• Estimate the cost and potential impact of programs and recommend comprehensive strategies.
• Analyze the projected demand for senior housing in the five years following the first meeting of the commission.

Hebrew SeniorLife is New England’s largest nonprofit provider of senior health care and living communities. With over 2,300 employees, it serves 4,500 older people daily across seven campuses in Greater Boston. Presently, its four senior affordable housing campuses have over 1,000 units and a growing and expanding portfolio. 

Hebrew SeniorLife also provides on-site services through the Right Care, Right Place, Right Time (R3) program to over 2,000 residents at partner sites. The R3 program offers enhanced supportive services that allow residents to remain safely in their homes and communities. This research-tested model of care is an innovative program that integrates wellness teams into senior housing communities. This integration results in an overall improved quality of life, including decreased levels of hospitalizations, emergency department visits, long-term care placements, and falls. 

The housing need is great. It is reported that today, at least 70% of older residents in 85% of municipalities do not have sufficient access to affordable housing. At Hebrew SeniorLife, there are almost 900 people on waitlists for its affordable housing sites.

About Hebrew SeniorLife
Hebrew SeniorLife, an affiliate of Harvard Medical School, is a national senior services leader uniquely dedicated to rethinking, researching, and redefining the possibilities of aging. Hebrew SeniorLife cares for more than 4,500 older adults a day across campuses throughout Greater Boston. Locations include: Hebrew Rehabilitation Center-Boston and Hebrew Rehabilitation Center-NewBridge in Dedham; NewBridge on the Charles, Dedham; Orchard Cove, Canton; Simon C. Fireman Community, Randolph; Center Communities of Brookline, Brookline; Jack Satter House, Revere; and Leyland Community, Dorchester. Founded in 1903, Hebrew SeniorLife also conducts influential research into aging at the Hinda and Arthur Marcus Institute for Aging Research, which has a portfolio of more than $98 million, making it one of the largest gerontological research facilities in the U.S. in a clinical setting. It also trains more than 500 geriatric care providers each year. For more information about Hebrew SeniorLife, visit our website or follow us on our blog, Facebook, Instagram, Threads, and LinkedIn.