The 2025–2026 legislative session is already well underway—bills have been filed, legislative agendas are set, committees assigned and a few informational hearings have already been completed. Most recently, HCFA staff have been meeting with members of the legislature to introduce our new legislative priorities while continuing to build key relationships.
HCFA’s looking to build on last session’s progress by advocating for medical debt relief, increased access to primary care and more affordable health care.
HCFA Legislative Priorities 2025-2026
1. Medical Debt
Despite Massachusetts having the highest rates of insurance coverage in the country, 40% of residents still struggle to afford care, and 1 in 8 are carrying medical debt. To address these issues, HCFA is prioritizing three bills, addressing different aspects medical debt. They would ensure that people who are already carrying medical debt are protected from future financial harm and would help prevent people from accumulating medical debt in the first place.
2. Primary Care
HCFA has heard increasingly on our HelpLine from individuals and families who are struggling to access care and are unable to get an appointment with a primary care doctor. HCFA’s primary care priority bills would increase investment in primary care by setting a statewide spending target, update how primary care providers are paid, reduce out-of-pocket costs for patients, ensuring equal pay for community health centers, and expand the primary care workforce through a Medicaid residency program to train more doctors.
3. Affordability
While the prescription drug reform and market oversight laws passed last session marked a significant step forward in addressing the rising cost of premiums and prescription drugs in the Commonwealth, there is still work to do to lower system and consumer costs. Several HCFA priority bills will build on the work from last session and continue to address rising health system costs, increasing premiums, and prescription drug prices. These bills include a proposal to increase accountability in the state’s benchmark process to address hospital and health system costs and give the Division of Insurance tools to push back on rising premiums. It would also increase accountability of pharmaceutical manufacturers by allowing the state to review high-cost drugs.
Incredible progress was made towards improving health care equity, affordability and accessibility in Massachusetts over the last few years. We look forward to continuing to work with the legislature this session to not only defend that progress but further expand health equity and ensure coverage and access for all. Stay tuned to learn more about HCFA’s legislative priorities and stay updated on how HCFA’s advocacy progresses throughout the session.
Grace Jurkovich is a Policy & Project Manager at Health Care For All.
