"Our volunteer firefighters risk their lives daily and need the necessary equipment to do their jobs safely. I’m proud to have secured this investment for the safety of our firefighters and the East McKeesport and Wall Borough communities," said state Rep. Brandon Markosek. Read more
Senator Lindsey M. Williams (D-Allegheny) and Representative Lindsay Powell (D-21) announced that the Etna Center for Community will receive a $500,000 Multipurpose Community Facilities Program grant. This funding will be used to continue demolition on the historic Ochese Building and begin renovations to create a library and community space, the highest-prioritized project from Etna’s EcoDistrict Plan. Read more
PITTSBURGH, Oct. 11 – State Rep. Aerion A. Abney, D-Allegheny, announced that a $500,000 grant has been awarded to HH Main LLC. The funds will be utilized for the renovation of Hill House and, specifically, to address the building’s structural integrity when it comes to safety and functionality. “For more than 50 years, Hill House has provided medical assistance and various additional resources to the Black and brown residents of the Hill District and many others. These dollars will be an investment in the next 50-plus years of its invaluable service to the community,” Abney said. “Thank you to Senator Jay Costa for his collaboration in securing this grant and to community partners for their advocacy of Hill House.” HH Main LLC’s grant money is part of $45 million package made possible by the Multi-Purpose Community Facilities Program , which is facilitated by the Pennsylvania Broadband Development Authority. The program, part of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, offers competitive grants to community anchor institutions for constructing, acquiring or improving buildings that are or will be open to the public and will directly enable work, education and health monitoring at the respective facility. A full list of grant recipients in this round of funding can be found here . Read more
As an emergency physician, I have seen firsthand the devastating impact of untreated mental health conditions. For far too many young people, the first time they access mental health care is in a moment of crisis – often in the ER, when their symptoms have already escalated beyond what community care could have addressed. Read more
Senator Lindsey M. Williams (D-Allegheny) and Reps. Emily Kinkead (D-20) Arvind Venkat (D-30) announced that Northland Public Library will receive a $650,000 Multipurpose Community Facilities Program grant. Northland is currently undergoing a major renovation project to upgrade their entire facility and improve accessibility for all patrons while adding much needed space for work, study, and gathering. Read more
BRADDOCK, Oct. 10 – New grant funding of $2.5 million from the Pennsylvania Broadband Development Authority will support construction of a new medical center and office building in Homewood and renovations to the Carnegie Free Library of Swissvale, state Rep. Abigail Salisbury announced today. Salisbury said the funding includes $2 million to Primary Health Care Services Inc., for construction of a 44,000-square-foot medical center and offices facility. “This is an extremely exciting project because the new center is going to generate a lot of additional activity for the area,” Salisbury said. “In addition to expanding health care access, jobs, high-speed broadband and other opportunities for residents, the new complex will serve as an anchor for other commercial tenants, drawing new businesses and new pedestrian traffic to support them.” Salisbury said additional funding of $500,000 to the Woodland Hills School District will support renovations to the Carnegie Free Library. “The new funding to Swissvale Library will provide needed upgrades to a beloved place that has been serving our community for more than a century,” Salisbury said. “The renovations will improve service for neighbors in Rankin, Swissvale and surrounding areas by ensuring folks have strong broadband service connecting to important services and comfortable, user-friendly spaces to take advantage of the Read more
“Years of delay have prevented the full implementation of many interstate licensure compacts, leaving professionals and patients without the benefits these agreements offer,” state Rep. Brandon Markosek said. “Interstate compacts provide much-needed flexibility for licensed professionals, enabling them to more easily work where they are needed most. This makes Pennsylvania a more attractive place for professionals in vital fields, like nurses and other health professionals, who are in high demand.” Read more
“Having grown up with a stutter, I know how important speech therapy can be, not only in improving speech but also in boosting confidence,” state Rep. Brandon Markosek said. “I understand firsthand the challenges and stigma that come with stuttering and that giving children access to necessary speech therapy early on will help them develop communication skills important to their academic and social development. This legislation is about making sure that no child in Pennsylvania has to face the additional hurdle of affordability when it comes to getting the support they need to thrive.” Read more
HARRISBURG, Oct. 9 – The Pennsylvania House today passed landmark legislation introduced by state Rep. Dan Frankel that would prohibit annual and lifetime limits on health insurance policies across the commonwealth. Frankel, who is majority chair of the House Health Committee, said his H.B. 2562 would ensure that all Pennsylvanians are guaranteed access to essential health care, regardless of federal actions or court decisions that could impact existing protections. “No family should be forced to choose between life-saving treatment and financial ruin because their insurance arbitrarily cuts them off when they need it most,” said Frankel. “By passing House Bill 2562, we are taking a stand to ensure that Pennsylvanians are protected, no matter what happens in Washington or the courts.” Currently, protections against annual and lifetime limits are in place under the Affordable Care Act. However, with ongoing legal challenges and political threats to the ACA, the passage of H.B. 2562 is a crucial step toward enshrining these protections into Pennsylvania state law, providing residents peace of mind and ensuring that health care remains a right, not a privilege. The legislation passed as part of a three-bill legislative package to enshrine ACA protections into state law. The other bills include: H.B. 2563 , by Rep. Eddie Day Pashinski, which would allow parents to keep their adult Read more
HARRISBURG, Oct. 9 – Legislation that would make Diwali an official holiday in Pennsylvania passed the General Assembly with a bipartisan majority today and will soon become law. Senate Bill 402 was introduced by state Sens. Greg Rothman, R-Cumberland/Dauphin/Perry, and Nikil Saval, D-Phila., and would not require school, government or employer closings. “Thousands of Pennsylvanians celebrate Diwali each year, as a time of reflection and gathering,” Rothman said. “Recognizing Diwali as an official state holiday upholds and celebrates our commonwealth’s rich cultural diversity.” “Wherever we’re from and whatever our background, all of us deserve to have our cultures recognized and honored. As the number of Asian Americans grows steadily here in Pennsylvania and across the country, our commonwealth’s official recognition of Diwali sends a clear message of inclusion,” Saval added. “I am so proud to have worked with my colleagues in the state legislature to put Pennsylvania at the forefront by acknowledging Diwali’s deep cultural significance and inviting all people to reflect on the endless struggle of light over darkness.” State Rep. Arvind Venkat’s companion legislation, House Bill 436 , passed the Pennsylvania House in April of last year. “Diwali, the Festival of Lights, is celebrated by over a billion Hindus, Jains, Sikhs and Buddhists worldwide, including hundreds Read more
Newly listed state grant programs Read more
Recommendations include employment targets, eliminating sub-minimum wage and segregated work for state employees and contractors Read more
HARRISBURG, Oct. 1 – State Rep. Arvind Venkat’s bills that would enhance licensure flexibility for physician assistants related to their supervising physicians passed the Pennsylvania House unanimously today. House Bills 2294 and 2295 would amend the physician licensure acts in Pennsylvania and allow physician assistants to work with either classification of physician, a Doctor of Medicine or Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine, without having to align with the physician’s license type. Current law requires that physician assistants and supervising physicians must be licensed by the same state medicine board. “Medical professionals want to help as many patients as possible, and my commonsense bills eliminate a circumstantial barrier to performing their sworn duty,” Venkat, D-Allegheny, said. “I want to thank my colleagues on both sides of the aisle for their affirmative votes and their personal investments in the health and livelihood of patients and health professionals alike.” Both bills now move to the state Senate for consideration. Read more
HARRISBURG, Oct. 1 – State Rep. Abigail Salisbury joined health advocates and lawmakers today at a Capitol news conference to raise awareness that the state provides newborn screening for a wide range of genetic diseases and to urge that Gaucher disease be added to the list of screened diseases. “It’s important for parents to know that Pennsylvania already performs genetic screening for a wide range of listed genetic diseases right at birth,” Salisbury said. “As of now, Gaucher disease is not on that list, which means that hospitals and parents don’t automatically receive information on whether their newborn has the disease. “We’re here to raise awareness about that and to ask the state to reconsider adding Gaucher disease to the list so parents can know from the start whether their child needs treatment.” Also speaking at the event were Aviva Fisher Rosenberg, who is co-founder of the Gaucher Community Alliance; Majority House Health Committee Chairman Rep. Dan Frankel; and Rep. Tarik Khan, who is a member of the House Health Committee and the Pennsylvania Women’s Health Caucus. Gaucher disease is an inherited disorder that is most common in Jewish people of Eastern and Central European descent. The disease can impair organ function, weaken bones and damage bone marrow, resulting in multiple complications, including blood cancers. The disease can appear at any age. A rare Read more
HARRISBURG, Oct. 1 – State Rep. Arvind Venkat’s bill that would provide greater oversight to the implementation of artificial intelligence by health insurance companies when determining the appropriateness of claims was the subject of an informational hearing today in the Pennsylvania House Insurance Committee. “The rapid growth in the use of artificial intelligence in the health industry may help improve the efficiency of processing insurance claims, but streamlining this process may deprive people of the human connection essential in doctor-patient relationships,” said Venkat, D-Allegheny. “My bill would not only keep that bond intact, but it would ensure that the deciding determination of claims is in the hands of qualified medical professionals and out of the hands of software programmed to make that call.” House Bill 1663 would place several requirements regarding AI that insurers must follow. They are: Disclosing to clinicians, subscribers and the public that claims evaluations use AI algorithms. Defining “algorithms used in claims review” as clinical review criteria and, therefore, ensuring they are subject to existing laws and regulations that such criteria is grounded in clinical evidence. Requiring specialized health care professionals who review claims for health insurance companies and rely on initial AI algorithms for such reviews to individually open each clinical record or clinical Read more
HARRISBURG, Sept. 30 – State Rep. Arvind Venkat’s bill that would establish timelines for Medical Assistance applications to be approved or renewed for eligible individuals transitioning to long-term care facilities and compensate those facilities for all services provided during the application processing period was the subject of an informational hearing today in the Pennsylvania House Aging & Older Adult Services Committee. As proposed, H.B. 2320 would require the state Department of Human Services and county assistance offices meet said benchmarks. Long-term care facilities could receive part of the funds owed to them faster and request a status update on pending application(s). The department could also end reimbursement to facilities if a person’s Medical Assistance request is denied and claw back any previous interim payments in such circumstances. “Long-term care facilities are vital pillars of the health community in more ways than one. This includes maintaining quality and quantity of care as an individual’s eligibility for Medical Assistance is determined,” Venkat, D-Allegheny, said. “We must, however, compensate these institutions in a timely manner so they can continue to perform their great work. My bill holds state and county offices accountable, in terms of MA application turnaround, and benefits patient and provider alike.” House Bill 2320 will be the subject of further deliberation in the Read more
“These grants are a big win for our community,” said state Rep. Anita Kulik, D-Allegheny. “The VFW Post in Carnegie provides important services for our veterans, and the Bridgeville Public Library is a cornerstone of our community’s educational and cultural resources. I’m thrilled to see these funds going toward projects that will benefit our veterans, library patrons and the broader communities.” Read more
Lawmakers detail state budget process, answer questions from community Read more
HARRISBURG, Sept. 24 – State Rep. Lindsay Powell, D-Allegheny, has introduced a bill that would provide financial assistance to the spouses of Pennsylvania first responders killed in the line of duty. Powell’s legislation ( H.B. 2559 ) would clarify a provision in the state Workers’ Compensation Act and ensure surviving spouses of emergency personnel continue to receive death benefits, even if they choose to remarry. Current law does keep retirement pensions in place at 50% for surviving spouses, but death benefits cease upon remarriage. “Our first responders risk everything to protect us and some make the ultimate sacrifice. Standing with them means standing with their families,” Powell said. “It’s only right to have their backs, and my bill would help give them the financial stability to rebuild their lives.” The bill has been referred to the PA House Labor & Industry Committee. Read more
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