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New Report Highlights the Need for More Investments for Pennsylvania Children Birth to Age-5

A coordinated early care and education system ensures infants, toddlers, and preschoolers succeed in school and allows parents to work while knowing their children are safe and learning in high-quality care. Yet, inequities exist, causing too few children to have access and a historic early learning workforce shortage, as shown in our first-ever State of Early Care and Education report.

Working with Pre-K for PA and Start Strong PA as part of Early Learning Pennsylvania (ELPA), a statewide coalition of advocates focused on supporting young Pennsylvanians from birth to age five, the report uses data and research to show that without new investments in the child care workforce, Pre-K Counts, or the Head Start Supplemental Assistance Program, early learning providers will continue to lose teachers and close classrooms.

The growth and development of young children in high-quality early care and education is the start of a continuum with benefits that last into adulthood. Providing every child—regardless of race, ethnicity, geography or income—access to high-quality early care and education programs ensures an equitable start to their academic careers.

A coordinated child care system serving infants and toddlers is vital to the economy, allowing parents to work while knowing their children are safe and learning in high-quality care.

According to the report, inadequate funding for the child care system has led to issues of supply and demand that impact a family’s ability to find affordable, high-quality child care, and child care providers’ ability to be compensated fairly to pay their teachers and maintain business expenses:

  • Unlivable wages of less than $12.50/hour are causing a historic workforce shortage that is closing classrooms and driving up wait lists for working mothers and families.
  • Child care providers can’t raise teacher wages because families are already struggling to afford the costs of care. On average, costs for infant child care comprise approximately 17.5% of the Pennsylvania median family income.
  • Only 21% of eligible children under three are served by Child Care Works, leaving over 83,000 eligible infants and toddlers unserved.

The next step in the academic continuum for children is access to high-quality pre-k programs, but only 43% of eligible 3- and 4-year-olds participate in high-quality, publicly funded pre-k, leaving over 87,000 without access to a high-quality program.

The workforce is essential for delivering high-quality pre-k. Yet, while the level of quality expects and demands the appropriate knowledge and credentials of professionals, the compensation for pre-k teachers remains significantly lower than their colleagues in K-12 settings.

Unlike child care, publicly funded pre-k programs in Pennsylvania rely on annual state budget funding appropriations. High-quality pre-k has historically been a consensus issue, aligning political parties and enjoying a decade of growing investment. However, policymakers have flat-funded pre-k in the 2023-24 state budget, which is baffling.

The report shows inequitable access to early care and education opportunities for children in Pennsylvania:

  • As of March, only 1 in 4 income-eligible infants, toddlers, and preschoolers who are Black, Indigenous, and children of color participated in Child Care Works, with only 40% enrolled in a high-quality child care program. Of the 12% of income-eligible non-Hispanic white infants, toddlers, and preschoolers participating in Child Care Works, 51% were enrolled in a high-quality child care program.
  • Only 23% of all children served in Pre-K Counts and Head Start Supplemental Assistance Programs in Pennsylvania are Non-Hispanic Black, compared to 41% of children identifying as Non-Hispanic White.
  • Researchers at Penn State University found white preschoolers accounted for the majority of program participants in Pre-K Counts, and white children were increasingly more likely to be enrolled in a high-quality pre-k program compared to Black children. Recommendations from the report specifically called for Pennsylvania to increase funding for pre-k access and to serve more Black children from urban and high-poverty communities.

And compared to the K-12 and post-secondary education systems, the sector is the most diverse yet the lowest paid.

  • Racial disparities exist within the professional child care sector, with Black educators earning approximately 2% less than their white counterparts. Hispanic educators earn approximately 5% less than white educators, exacerbating the already low wages of the sector and deepening inequities and gaps in pay.
  • There is a pay gap between pre-k and kindergarten teachers, but an even larger wage gap between Black and non-Black educators. A $1/hour wage gap exists between Black and non-Black teachers at the preschool level.

The evidence is clear that access to a high-quality early care and education system positively impacts the lives of Pennsylvania children. Unfortunately, the state is falling short for children, families and providers across the commonwealth. Comprehensive policy solutions and increased investments are needed to change the system’s trajectory. Working together, we can build Pennsylvania’s early care and education system as a leading model.

Oral Health Equity Research Award Funding Opportunity Announced

The American Association for Dental, Oral, and Craniofacial Research and the Delta Dental Institute are now accepting applications for the second annual Oral Health Equity Research Award. This award supports research that advances recommendations for greater oral health equity in populations that lack access to dental care or improves oral health literacy for underserved populations. Submissions must represent original research that addresses social determinants of health and oral health disparities, and promotes oral health equity in the areas of access to care or oral health literacy. Two grants will be awarded at $25,000 each. Applications are due before October 17.

Click here for more information.

Pennsylvania Broadband Development Authority Approves Comprehensive Five-Year Action Plan To Expand Access Across the Commonwealth 

After meeting with hundreds of Pennsylvania residents, businesses and industry partners, PBDA incorporates feedback and finalizes plan to expand broadband infrastructure using $1.16 billion in federal funding

 Pennsylvania Broadband Development Authority (PBDA) Executive Director Brandon Carson announced the approval of the five-year action plan to expand internet access across the Commonwealth using $1.16 billion in funding through the federal Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Program. Governor Josh Shapiro recently announced the Commonwealth’s BEAD allocation as part of President Biden’s “Internet for All” initiative. Shaped by feedback from Pennsylvanians, the BEAD five-year action plan is now with the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) for approval.

The PBDA’s findings encouraged collaboration across the Commonwealth through direct engagement with residents, businesses, and industry partners and the plan was developed with input from 21 community conversations across the state and more than 500 participants. Three roundtable sessions gathered feedback from digital equity stakeholders, workforce development professionals, and internet service providers. The Five-Year Action Plan also includes a survey that collected 5,920 responses in-person and online in several different languages and a public comment period that ran from July 26th through August 8th yielded 526 comments on the draft Action Plan. Together, this public feedback will allow the Commonwealth to drive out resources in an affordable and equitable way for all Pennsylvanians.

“Everyone in the Commonwealth should have access to affordable, high-speed internet,” said Executive Director Carson. “There are more than 276,000 Commonwealth households without internet access and over 52,000 without reliable access. The adoption of this plan puts us another step closer to making sure every Pennsylvanian has access to reliable, high-speed internet. Under the leadership of Governor Shapiro, we look forward to connecting communities across the Commonwealth.”

Since day one, Governor Shapiro has said extending and expanding access to broadband across the Commonwealth and making connections more reliable and affordable for Pennsylvanians is a top priority of his Administration. Just last month, Governor Shapiro announced that the Commonwealth will receive $1.16 billion in federal funding to extend broadband infrastructure to communities that currently lack reliable, affordable, high-speed internet access in order to connect Pennsylvanians and ensure they can go to school, start and grow businesses, and access telemedicine no matter where they live.

Following NTIA approval, the PBDA plans to begin awarding BEAD subgrants to approved, eligible applicants in 2024. The plan is a critical step toward achieving universal, affordable broadband access that meets and exceeds federally defined broadband speeds across the commonwealth.

The Five-Year Action Plan identifies expected obstacles to full deployment and discusses various implementation strategies.  Additionally, it details how PBDA will work with a myriad of partners with the shared goals of improving digital access, generating equity, removing obstacles and barriers, acquiring digital skills and devices, fostering resilience, and enriching the benefits of connectivity.

The Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment Program (BEAD) requires the Five-Year Action Plan be submitted to the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) on August 12th for its approval.  BEAD also requires a Digital Equity Statewide Plan, which is currently under development as well.  As the PBDA awaits NTIA’s approval on the Five-Year Action Plan, the public involvement process continues with additional community conversations, focus groups, and the online survey.  These additional public involvement efforts will continue to inform the Digital Equity Statewide Plan.  The Five-Year Action Plan aligns its Goals and Objectives with the Digital Equity Plan to produce sustainable outcomes and a long-term solution to lack of high-speed connectivity and access to literacy programs and devices.

The Shapiro Administration is dedicated to expanding broadband access across the state Gov. Shapiro recently travelled to Beaver and Luzerne counties to emphasize the importance of expanding broadband infrastructure across Pennsylvania.

Visit the PBDA’s website to learn more about its work to close the digital divide in the Commonwealth.

For more information about the Department of Community and Economic Development, visit DCED website, and be sure to stay up-to-date with all of our agency news on Facebook, X, and LinkedIn.

New! Rural Innovation Profile of Nebraska ACO

The Rural Health Value team is pleased to release a new Rural Innovation Profile: A Rural Accountable Care Organization’s Journey

For more than a decade, South East Rural Physicians Alliance Accountable Care Organization (SERPA‐ACO), a physician‐led ACO that includes 16 physician-owned clinics in Nebraska has been leveraging health care payment and delivery models to provide high quality, comprehensive, coordinated, and patient‐centered care at a lower cost.

Related resources on the Rural Health Value website:

For more information, contact Clint MacKinney, MD, MS, Co-Principal Investigator, at clint-mackinney@uiowa.edu

New Report: Addressing the Oral Health Needs of Hispanics in the U.S.

The Hispanic Dental Association and CareQuest Institute for Oral Health released a new report, “Addressing the Oral Health Needs of Hispanics in the U.S.,” which explores the oral health status, dental needs, utilization of dental services, and workforce. The report found that higher percentages of gum disease and tooth loss were reported among Hispanic people compared with other racial groups, and Hispanic children ages 6 to 11 had more decayed and filled teeth than others in that age group. The report also found that Hispanic dentists only represent 6% of the U.S. dentist workforce.

Click here to read the full report.

HPV Provider On-Demand Video Series Launched

The American Cancer Society, the National HPV Roundtable, and the Indiana Immunization Coalition launched a new HPV Provider Video Series which features on-demand sessions with expert insight, the latest information and vaccination guidelines for HPV, and strategies to implement in order to increase vaccination rates. Users must register for the series, but will have access to all sessions with registration.

Click here to register for the sessions.

Just Released! Results from 2022 Pennsylvania Dental Assistant Survey

PCOH recently completed the “2022 PA Dental Assistant Survey” and created a resource to share the results. Dental assistants provide a key role in dental offices and health care settings. Like other health care and dental professionals, dental assistants have been affected by the rise in workforce challenges in recent years.

In 2022, PCOH sought to understand the state of dental assistants in Pennsylvania through disseminating a survey to dental assistants across the commonwealth. The survey was shared with dental assistants who had passed the Dental Assisting National Board (DANB) between 1982-2021.

The findings of this survey outline next steps for recruitment and retention of Pennsylvania dental assistants.

Click here to download the resource.

The Managed Care Program Annual Report (MCPAR) Has Been Released

Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) regulations at 42 CFR § 438.66(e) require states to submit a Managed Care Program Annual Report (MCPAR). Under the regulation, each state must submit to CMS, no later than 180 days after each contract year, a report on each managed care program administered by the state. In June, Pennsylvania submitted four MCPA Reports: Behavioral HealthChoicesCommunity HealthChoicesPhysical HealthChoices, and Adult Community Autism Program (ACAP).

Senator Fetterman Speaks Out on His Battle with Depression

U.S. Sen. John Fetterman graced the cover of the July 28, 2023, edition of Time magazine. In the accompanying cover story, How John Fetterman Came Out of the DarknessSen. Fetterman discusses his treatment for and recovery from severe depression. Also, in a recent interview with The New York Times, Sen. John Fetterman talked about missing his family, national interest in him, voting in a sweatshirt and shorts and the prospects of a second term for President Joe Biden, The Philadelphia Inquirer reports.