New Massachusetts Law Mandates Interpreter Services in Hospital Emergency Rooms

Under a new state law that takes effect July 1, all hospitals in Massachusetts will be required to supply interpretation services in emergency rooms for non-English-speaking patients, the Boston Herald reports. The state's Public Health Council on June 26 adopted the final regulations concerning the law, which will require hospitals to conduct needs assessments to determine which languages other than English are spoken "most frequently in their service area" and design a plan to satisfy those needs. In addition, hospitals "have to assure that the interpreters are competent and have received appropriate medical training," Dr. Howard Koh, the state's public health commissioner, said. While the law necessitates that all hospitals provide interpreter services, it does not mandate that every hospital hire full-time interpreters (Lasalandra, Boston Herald, 6/27). The state law comes on the heels of guidelines issued by the government in August 2000 on how medical providers can comply with "long-standing" -- but rarely enforced -- legal requirements that any entity receiving federal assistance (such as Medicare and Medicaid funds) must not discriminate against those with limited English proficiency (HHS Office of Civil Rights Fact Sheet, August 2000).