Press Release: 9/18/2025
Senate Approves Bills to Combat Opioid Crisis, Protect Residents, and Manage Car Rental Costs
September 18, 2025
Legislation Strengthens Fentanyl Testing Access, Updates Nicky’s Law, and Aligns Rental Insurance Rules
(BOSTON—9/18/2025) Today, the Massachusetts Senate approved three bills aimed at combatting the opioid epidemic, protecting people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, and managing car rental costs for residents.
The approved legislation expands protections for individuals using testing equipment to protect against fentanyl, updates an existing protection law to close an unintended gap for day habilitation participants, and changes car rental insurance requirements to reduce costs for Massachusetts residents.
“Today the Senate took action to protect some of our most vulnerable residents and manage costs for consumers,” said Senate President Karen E. Spilka (D-Ashland). “Few responsibilities are more important, and I applaud the Senate for our decisive action today to protect people using testing equipment to protect against fentanyl, protect residents in day habilitation centers, and manage costs of rental cars. I’m grateful to Chair Rodrigues for his committee’s work on this legislation, and to each member for their leadership and support on these important bills.”
“These three bills continue the Senate’s strong tradition of extending safeguards for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities, ensuring legal protections for the use of fentanyl test strips and test equipment, and putting the Commonwealth in line with most states’ insurance coverage for rental car usage,” said Senator Michael J. Rodrigues (D-Westport), Chair of the Senate Committee on Ways and Means. “These commonsense initiatives protect vulnerable people who would otherwise be disadvantaged by the current law. It’s particularly important to restore the original intent of the 2024 “Nicky’s Law,” which now extends protections to all care settings, regardless of their funding source. I’m pleased these loopholes will now be addressed with the passage of this legislation.”
Protecting People Using Fentanyl Testing Equipment
An Act relative to fentanyl test strips, S.1057, is intended to reduce the tragic toll of overdoses and make life-saving tools accessible to those who need them most. It explicitly exempts fentanyl testing equipment from the list of prohibited drug paraphernalia and expands liability protections to anyone who provides, administers, or uses the tests, including first responders.
“Fentanyl test strips are inexpensive, easy to use, and, most importantly, they are an evidence-based tool that saves lives,” said Senate Majority Leader Cindy Creem (D-Newton), primary sponsor of the legislation. “By making them widely available, Massachusetts can give people one more way to prevent overdoses and protect families from tragedy.”
“This legislation is critical for all first responders and any citizen who steps in to save the life of someone experiencing a fentanyl overdose,” said Senator Lydia Edwards (D-East Boston), Senate Chair of the Joint Committee on the Judiciary. “While September is reserved for National Recovery Month, it is important to recognize the impact of a bill that can help better protect our loved ones and those working to save lives in our communities. Fentanyl overdoses are devastating and should be treated with utmost precaution. This legislation will add necessary protection for anyone who provides, administers, or uses the test to help a victim. I want to thank Senator Creem for her excellent leadership on this legislation and Senate President Spilka for her support and efforts.”
The legislation builds upon a 2024 law that provided criminal and civil liability protections for those in the harm reduction community who provide or use fentanyl test strips in good faith. According to the Department of Public Health, nearly 400,000 fentanyl test strips were distributed in 2024, and fentanyl was present in 88.6% of opioid-related overdose deaths that year. This legislation would expand the liability protections beyond those just in the harm reduction community and ensure police officers who seek to distribute the tests or others acting in good faith are afforded legal protection. A fact sheet with full details of the legislation is available online.
Protecting Day Habilitation Residents
An Act to update Nicky’s Law, S.165, strengthens protections for people with intellectual or developmental disabilities who participate in MassHealth contracted day habilitation programs and ensures that participants in day habilitation programs are afforded the same safeguards from abuse as individuals in other care settings.
“Placing your trust in a caretaker to ensure the safety and wellbeing of a child, parent, family member, or loved one with a disability is hard. When that trust is violated, it can feel like the ultimate betrayal of not only the caretaker who did it, but also the system that allowed it to happen,” said Senator Michael Moore (D-Millbury), primary sponsor of the legislation. “I introduced Nicky’s Law several years ago in response to the heartbreaking story of Nicky Chan, who was physically abused by his caretaker in 2014. I’d like to thank Nicky’s mom, Cheryl, as well as the Arc of Massachusetts and the Disabled Persons Protection Commission for their advocacy for this expansion of Nicky’s Law to cover day habilitation programs – their partnership has been invaluable during this process. This legislation represents another step toward making sure Nicky’s story does not happen to anyone else.”
“When Nicky’s Law was first passed, it was about creating protections and accountability for some of our most vulnerable residents,” said Senator Robyn Kennedy (D-Worcester), Senate Chair of the Joint Committee on Children, Families, and Persons with Disabilities. “Now, by expanding these safeguards to include day habilitation programs, we are making sure that no one falls through the cracks. We must continue to monitor, adjust, and pursue preventative measures, and I thank the Disabled Persons Protection Commission and the advocates who brought this critical update to our attention.”
The legislation would ensure that the existing statewide registry that prevents individuals with substantiated abuse allegations from being hired in care positions would include day habilitation programs contracted by MassHealth. A fact sheet with full details of the legislation is available online.
Promoting Affordable Car Rentals
An Act relative to affordable car rentals, S.2367, aligns Massachusetts with the majority of other states by updating car rental insurance requirements to maintain liability coverage on a secondary basis, making rental companies responsible only if the renter is uninsured or underinsured.
“When friends visited me on Cape Cod this summer, they were stunned at just how expensive it was to rent even a small sedan for the weekend,” said Senator Julian Cyr (D-Truro), primary sponsor of the legislation. “And they're not wrong — rental car prices in Massachusetts are higher than almost anywhere else in the country, in part because we've kept an outdated insurance requirement on the books. We're one of the only states where rental companies, not your own insurance, are required to carry primary coverage, and the cost of that policy gets passed right along to consumers. By aligning Massachusetts with the rest of the country, we're helping lower rental car prices for families, travelers and anyone who needs to rent a car in a pinch. I'm proud the Senate has taken this step to make life just a little more affordable for our residents and visitors.”
“As we continue to tackle affordability issues in Massachusetts, we need to eliminate this unnecessary insurance requirement that is out of alignment with most other states,” said Senator Brendan Crighton (D-Lynn), Senate Chair of the Joint Committee on Transportation. “As co-chair of the Joint Committee on Transportation, I was proud to help advance this legislation that takes the burden of covering primary insurance off of car rental companies, which will in turn prevent raised prices for consumers. Thank you to Senate President Spilka for prioritizing a solution to this issue and Senator Cyr for his leadership on this measure.”
By shifting primary liability to the renter’s personal auto insurance, the legislation helps make car rentals more affordable and accessible for Massachusetts residents, reducing costs while maintaining necessary protections. A fact sheet with full details of the legislation is available online.
Votes taken by committee to advance the bills to the floor are available publicly on the respective bills’ webpages, along with summaries of the legislation. A recording of the Senate’s livestreamed debate and votes on the legislation can be found archived on the public website.
Having been approved by the Senate, all three bills now advance to the House of Representatives for consideration.
Statements of Support
Maura Sullivan, CEO of The Arc of Massachusetts
“The Arc of Massachusetts extends its immense gratitude to the Massachusetts Senate for their unanimous passage of An Act to update Nicky's Law to protect individuals with disabilities in MassHealth day habilitation programs. This is a huge step forward and a critical measure that will expand the Abuser Registry to protect the most vulnerable members of our community. We are incredibly grateful to our bill's dedicated Senate sponsor, Senator Michael Moore, and to Senate Ways and Means Chairman Michael Rodrigues and the Senate President Karen Spilka. This bill has been a top priority for The Arc for several years. This amendment strengthens the registry and closes a critical loophole to ensure the safety and well-being of people with autism and intellectual and developmental disabilities. We are thrilled to see this bill move to the next stage and remain committed to ensuring its final passage into law.”
Nancy A. Alterio, Executive Director of the Disabled Persons Protection Commission
“The DPPC Abuser Registry has proven highly effective in preventing abusers of persons with intellectual and developmental disabilities from continuing to serve this vulnerable population. Unfortunately, an unintended consequence of a funding change for day habilitation clients removed these programs from purview of the Abuser Registry. The passage of this bill in the Senate marks an important step to reincorporate day habilitation centers into the Abuser Registry as initially intended by Nicky and Dana’s Law. The DPPC appreciates the work of Senator Moore in sponsoring this measure, the advocacy of The Arc of Massachusetts, and the support of the Senate and its leadership to advance this bill and promote the protection of adults with disabilities.”
Don Lefeve, Executive Director of the American Car Rental Association
“We appreciate our sponsor Senator Cyr and Senate leadership for advancing S. 2603. This legislation brings Massachusetts in line with over 90% of states on the primary–secondary insurance issue. It’s a fair, common-sense reform that aligns Massachusetts with national standards, while helping to keep rental car costs affordable for consumers across the state.”