Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 118 § 11
If a parent or dependent child requests care at an institution, as defined in section two of chapter one hundred and eighteen E, the institution furnishing such care may initiate an application on behalf of the parent or dependent child to the department and the department shall accept the application and act thereon. Such institution shall be entitled to notice, hearing and right of appeal in the same manner as an applicant or recipient, as provided in section eight.
Payment for such care shall be made, to the extent allowed by rules and regulations of the Secretary of Health, Education and Welfare, if an applicant dies before approval of his application. Payment for such medical care and hospitalization, including nursing home care, shall be paid, subject to the rules and regulations of the department and the rules and regulations of the Secretary of Health, Education and Welfare, for a reasonable period not to exceed thirty days prior to the date of application on account of said services actually rendered.
Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 118, § 11