Worcester Senior AdvisorWhat rights does an assisted living resident have in Massachusetts?
Every resident of a certified Assisted Living Residence has a list of rights set out in 651 CMR 12.08, including privacy, dignity, private communications and visitors, managing their own money, choosing their own health care providers and pharmacy, presenting grievances without reprisal, an itemized bill, and freedom from restraints.
- Privacy in the unit and private communications, including visitors of the resident's choice
- Contracting with licensed health care providers and the pharmacy of the resident's choice
- Presenting grievances without reprisal, including to the Assisted Living Ombudsman and Elder Protective Services
- An itemized bill for fees, charges and services
- No eviction except under landlord-tenant law (M.G.L. c. 186 or c. 239), with notice and court proceedings
- Freedom from restraints
- A written rights notice in at least 14-point type posted where residents can see it
The rights must be posted in the residence in at least 14-point type, along with the address and phone number of the Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program and the elder abuse hotline.
Can an assisted living residence evict a resident in Massachusetts?
Only through the courts: residents are tenants, and a residence may not remove a resident without formally terminating the tenancy and obtaining an eviction order under the landlord-tenant laws, M.G.L. c. 186 or c. 239.
The residence must also tell the resident in writing about community resources that can help during an eviction, including the Assisted Living Ombudsman. In practice most move-outs happen by agreement after a change in care needs; AGE's census counted 8,315 move-outs statewide in 2024, most often because of a death or a move to a nursing facility.
What must a residence give us before we sign?
A Disclosure of Rights and Services, which every prospective resident must receive before signing a residency agreement; it sets out the services, fees and policies, including any subsidy programs the residence accepts.
Read the disclosure and the residency agreement together. Look for how fees are set by care level, how much notice is given before a change, what triggers a reassessment, what services are optional and extra, and the residence's criteria for when a resident can no longer stay.
Can an assisted living residence raise its fees?
Yes: Massachusetts places no legal cap on assisted living fees except where government financing restricts them, and AGE warns that monthly fees are not fixed, because a change in care needs can raise them with limited notice.
About 24% of residences statewide reported affordability restrictions tied to programs such as 40B or Low Income Housing Tax Credits. Everywhere else, the contract governs. Ask for the last three years of increases in writing and compare how each residence prices care levels.
At a glance
| A Massachusetts assisted living resident has | A Massachusetts assisted living resident does not have | |
|---|---|---|
| Housing | Tenant protections, including court-ordered eviction only | A guaranteed right to stay if care needs exceed what the residence offers |
| Care | The right to choose outside providers and pharmacy | A right to nursing home care in the residence |
| Fees | An itemized bill and written disclosure | A legal cap on increases |
Sources include M.G.L. c. 19D and 651 CMR 12.00, the Executive Office of Aging & Independence's assisted living pages and 2025 Census Report, MassHealth's 2026 financial guidelines, DPH and CMS, and the CareScout and VA rate tables cited above; see our editorial standards.
