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State lawmakers, health care workers discuss hospital consolidations

(Oct 13, 2021) Reading Eagle

Pa. lawmakers hear from health care workers, first responders affected by hospital consolidation Hospital officials talk about the strains on the system. Read more

 

Lawmakers hear from healthcare workers, first responders, administrators and advocates impacted by hospital consolidation

(Oct 12, 2021) Policy Committee

EAST BRANDYWINE, Oct. 12 -- Last month, Tower Health announced that it will sell Chestnut Hill Hospital in Philadelphia and close Jennersville Hospital in West Grove, Pa. With the fate of Tower’s Brandywine, Phoenixville, Pottstown, and Reading hospitals up in the air, local healthcare workers, first responders, administrators and advocates addressed concerns and impacts on quality and access to health care, and township services. The event, called Saving Community Hospitals: Keeping Care Close, took place at 11 a.m. today at East Brandywine Township Building, 1214 Horseshoe Pike, Downingtown. “The pandemic has exposed how badly people need close and affordable healthcare,” said Rep. Dan Williams, D-Sadsbury Township. “Discussion today emphasized that we need to keep healthcare facilities open and improve care. Hospital consolidation can be a good thing if healthcare workers are respected and services to patients are upgraded.” Hospital administrators, Andrew Wigglesworth, vice president of Wojdak Government Relations, and Bill Ryan, vice president of Einstein Health Network/Urban Health Care Coalition, described how hospitals are dependent on Medicare or Medicaid, sharing that more than 62% of payers use that public funding mechanism. The funding mechanism results in strains on hospitals and could lead to more consolidations, such as those happening in the region. “Closures and consolidations impact our seniors and put stress Read more

 

Healthcare workers, administrators, and advocates participate in hearing addressing hospital consolidation

(Oct 12, 2021) Policy Committee

BRANDYWINE, Oct. 12 – Last month, Tower Health announced that it will sell Chestnut Hill Hospital in Philadelphia and close Jennersville Hospital in West Grove, Pa. With the fate of Tower’s Brandywine, Phoenixville, Pottstown, and Reading hospitals up in the air, local healthcare workers, administrators, and advocates discussed hospital consolidation and the impacts it has on quality and access to healthcare. A hearing, called Saving Community Hospitals: Keeping Care Close , took place at 11 AM on October 12 at East Brandywine Township Building, 1214 Horseshoe Pike, Downingtown, PA 19335. Host + Testifiers: Hosted by: Danielle Friel Otten, D-Chester, will be joined by House Democratic Policy Committee Chair Ryan Bizzarro, D-Erie, and Rep. Dan Williams, D-Chester, to discuss hospital consolidation in Pennsylvania. Testimony by: Andrew Wigglesworth, Executive Vice President of Einstein Health Network/Urban Health Care Coalition Bill Ryan, Vice President of Einstein Health Network/Urban Health Care Coalition Steve Morris, Political Organizer, Pennsylvania Association of Staff Nurses and Allied Professionals (PASNAP) Jerry Silberman, Senior Staff Representative, Pennsylvania Association of Staff Nurses and Allied Professionals (PASNAP) Matt Yarnell, President, SEIU Healthcare Pennsylvania Linda Heater, Unit Support Coordinator, Pottstown Hospital Lori Domin, President, Pottstown Nurses United Crystal Somerset-Bruce, Vice Read more

 

How Colleges Fill In-Demand Careers

(Oct 09, 2021) Policy Committee

The Policy Committee is holding a hearing at the Scranton Campus of Lackawanna College to talk about training students to fill in-demand careers. Read more

 

Navigating Healthcare Consolidation

(Oct 09, 2021) Policy Committee

The Policy Committee is holding a hearing on the changing landscape of healthcare consolidation, hosted by Rep. Madden. Read more

 

COVID-19 Impact on Main Street

(Oct 09, 2021) Policy Committee

The Policy Committee is holding a hearing on COVID-19's impact on downtown business districts, hosted by Rep. Melissa Shusterman, on Thursday, October 14th. Read more

 

Saving Community Hospitals: Keeping Care Close

(Oct 09, 2021) Policy Committee

Saving Community Hospitals: Keeping Care Close, will be held at 11 AM on October 12 at East Brandywine Township Building, 1214 Horseshoe Pike, Downingtown, PA 19335. Read more

 

People living with HIV ask for ‘dehumanizing’ state laws to be taken off the books

(Oct 07, 2021) Gabriela Martinez

(Harrisburg) — Advocates are raising awareness about laws in Pennsylvania that criminalize people living with HIV. Read more

 

Victim, advocates urge lawmakers to decriminalize HIV during hearing

(Oct 06, 2021) Policy Committee

HARRISBURG, Oct. 6 -- Pennsylvania has laws on the books that criminalize or control behaviors through HIV-specific statues and regulations. During a hearing today, PA House Democrats heard testimony from a victim of these laws and those advocating for change. “HIV is not a crime but there are outdated laws that make it a crime in Pennsylvania,” said Rep. Malcolm Kenyatta, D-Philadelphia. “We cannot have people losing lives and livelihoods because of this.” The victim who spoke at the hearing was Julie Graham, a resident of Cumberland County, who described the impact of these laws on her life after she was charged with four crimes, including two felonies, based on allegations by a man she had dated who claimed she didn’t disclose her HIV status. Due to these allegations, she faced personal and professional consequences that forever impacted the trajectory of her life. “I support and applaud your courage and advocacy to testify here today,” said Rep. Mary Isaacson, D-Philadelphia, who was the Co-Chair of the Policy Committee and host for the hearing today. “Being HIV positive is not a crime and we must do better in supporting those in Pennsylvania who are living with HIV.” PA House Democratic Policy Committee Chair, Rep. Ryan Bizzarro, D-Erie, was also in attendance and added: “HIV decriminalization is important to the entire Democratic Caucus and I am grateful to the testifiers who came today to speak on Read more

 

Agenda & Testimony: Decriminalizing HIV

(Oct 06, 2021) Policy Committee

Agenda and testimony for the Decriminalizing HIV hearing. Read more

 

‘HIV is not a crime’: Pa. House panel tackles outdated laws targeting those living with the virus

(Oct 06, 2021) Frank Pizzoli

‘HIV is not a crime but there are outdated laws that make it a crime in Pennsylvania. We cannot have people losing lives and livelihoods because of this,’ Rep. Malcolm Kenyatta said. Read more

 

HIV Decriminalization - Victim and advocates address decriminalizing HIV in PA

(Oct 06, 2021) Policy Committee

2/3rds of states in the United States have laws criminalizing or controlling behaviors through HIV-specific statutes and regulations and Pennsylvania is one of them (source: SERO Project HIV Criminalization Brochure; SERO Project HIV Criminalization Fact Sheet). This has serious consequences for Pennsylvanians that Rep. Malcolm Kenyatta will explore as he hosts a hearing about decriminalizing HIV in Pennsylvania. Read more

 

Hearing: Decriminalizing HIV

(Oct 05, 2021) Policy Committee

Pennsylvania is one of 22 states that have laws that criminalize or control behaviors through HIV-specific statutes and regulations. This has serious consequences for Pennsylvanians that Rep. Malcolm Kenyatta will explore as he hosts a hearing about decriminalizing HIV in Pennsylvania. The hearing will be held October 6 at 9:30 a.m. in 414 Main Capitol in Harrisburg. The media and public are invited in-person or to watch online here. Media inquiries may be submitted via email to policy@pahouse.net. The agenda and written testimony can be found here. Read more

 

Education officials, advocates call for adequacy and equity in basic education funding at Samuelson virtual hearing

(Sep 01, 2021) Policy Committee

BETHLEHEM, Sept. 1 – Citing that only a small portion of overall education is run through the Fair Education Funding Formula, state Rep. Steve Samuelson held a virtual hearing to learn more from educators and advocates on how Pennsylvania can fulfill its constitutional obligation to provide for the maintenance and support of a thorough and efficient system of public education to serve the needs of the Commonwealth. “Adequate state funding can make education resources more equitable based on the way we choose to allocate money,” Samuelson said. “The Fair Funding Formula was approved in 2016 but has not yet been fully implemented. We made progress this year with $100 million in Level Up funding distributed to underfunded districts like the Bethlehem Area School District. We need to continue efforts to fully implement the Fair Funding Formula.” Sean Brandon, Budget Analyst for the House Appropriations Committee began his presentation noting the importance of that constitutional commitment and shared how the Fair Funding Formula and budget practices allocate funds to school districts across the state. Joseph Roy, Bethlehem Area School District Superintendent and Karen Beck-Pooley, Bethlehem Area School District Director, shared from a district-level perspective of how they use the state funds received, noting challenges with charter school reimbursements and rising special education costs. Communities of color are disproportionately Read more

 

Fair Funding Formula for Equitable Education

(Aug 31, 2021) Policy Committee

A hearing on fair funding formula hosted by state Rep. Steve Samuelson. Read more

 

Fairly funding education focus of Samuelson hearing Wednesday

(Aug 31, 2021) Policy Committee

Bethlehem, Aug. 31 – Pennsylvania regularly falls at the bottom nationally when it comes to adequately funding basic education and state Rep. Steve Samuelson is hosting a public hearing to discuss how the fair funding formula can help better serve students and the economy. The hearing will be held at 10 a.m. Wednesday, Sept. 1 online at www.pahouse.com/policy . The public and media are welcome to tune in online. Media inquiries may be submitted to policy@pahouse.net . Samuelson, D-Northampton, will be joined by Policy Committee Chairman Ryan Bizzarro and members of the House Democratic Policy Committee, to further discuss how education investments ultimately result in economic returns to the state in the form of a more prepared workforce and productive citizens. Level Up funding from the current fiscal year will also be discussed. Read more

 

Education and Fair Funding - Testimony

(Aug 31, 2021) Policy Committee

Testimony from Rep. Steve Samuelson's hearing on education and fair funding. Read more

 

Schweyer to highlight Allentown’s Neighborhood Improvement Zone at Policy Committee tour Tuesday

(Aug 30, 2021) Policy Committee

LEHIGH, Aug. 30 – The benefits of Pennsylvania’s Neighborhood Improvement Zone program will be on display for policy makers at a Democratic Policy Committee tour hosted by state Rep. Peter Schweyer. The tour -- from 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 31 -- will begin at the IBEW Local 375, 101 S. 7 th St., Allentown. The media is encouraged to attend. Lawmakers from across the state, including Chairman Ryan Bizzarro, will join Schweyer for a look at how the NIZ -- currently funded by 97% state tax revenue and 3% local revenue -- has worked to attract developers and revitalize downtown Allentown. Media inquiries may be submitted to policy@pahouse.net . Read more

 

Fireworks Legalization Impact on the Community- Testimony

(Aug 30, 2021) Policy Committee

Testimony from Rep. Jeanne McNeill's hearing on the impact of fireworks legalization on the community. Read more

 

McNeill to host public hearing Monday on community impact of fireworks law updates

(Aug 26, 2021) Policy Committee

WHITEHALL, Aug. 26 -- Updates to the state fireworks law have had many unintended consequences that impact public safety and are putting a strain on law enforcement throughout the state, and state Rep. Jeanne McNeill is hosting a public hearing to discuss what the legislature can do. The hearing will be held at 1 p.m. Monday, Aug. 30 at the Teamsters Local 773 Union Hall, 3614 Lehigh St., Whitehall. The public is welcome, and the media is encouraged to attend. McNeill, D-Lehigh, will be joined by Policy Committee Chairman Ryan Bizzarro and members of the House Democratic Policy Committee, many of whom have similar concerns amidst increases in community concerns and pyrotechnic related accidents. McNeill, along with state Rep. Peter Schweyer, D-Lehigh, has introduced H.B. 988 aimed at repealing the most recent changes to the fireworks law and reinstating provisions as they existed pre-Act 43. Media inquiries may be submitted to policy@pahouse.net . Read more

 

State lawmakers, health care workers discuss hospital consolidations
Oct 13, 2021

Lawmakers hear from healthcare workers, first responders, administrators and advocates impacted by hospital consolidation
Oct 12, 2021

Healthcare workers, administrators, and advocates participate in hearing addressing hospital consolidation
Oct 12, 2021

How Colleges Fill In-Demand Careers
Oct 09, 2021

Navigating Healthcare Consolidation
Oct 09, 2021

COVID-19 Impact on Main Street
Oct 09, 2021

Saving Community Hospitals: Keeping Care Close
Oct 09, 2021

People living with HIV ask for ‘dehumanizing’ state laws to be taken off the books
Oct 07, 2021

Victim, advocates urge lawmakers to decriminalize HIV during hearing
Oct 06, 2021

Agenda & Testimony: Decriminalizing HIV
Oct 06, 2021

‘HIV is not a crime’: Pa. House panel tackles outdated laws targeting those living with the virus
Oct 06, 2021

HIV Decriminalization - Victim and advocates address decriminalizing HIV in PA
Oct 06, 2021

Hearing: Decriminalizing HIV
Oct 05, 2021

Education officials, advocates call for adequacy and equity in basic education funding at Samuelson virtual hearing
Sep 01, 2021

Fair Funding Formula for Equitable Education
Aug 31, 2021

Fairly funding education focus of Samuelson hearing Wednesday
Aug 31, 2021

Education and Fair Funding - Testimony
Aug 31, 2021

Schweyer to highlight Allentown’s Neighborhood Improvement Zone at Policy Committee tour Tuesday
Aug 30, 2021

Fireworks Legalization Impact on the Community- Testimony
Aug 30, 2021

McNeill to host public hearing Monday on community impact of fireworks law updates
Aug 26, 2021