The balance of the Pennsylvania House is on the line for a fourth time in less than a year, with a special election next week in Lower Bucks County. Two candidates are running to replace longtime Democratic Rep. John Galloway, who resigned to become a magisterial district judge. The outcome of the Feb. 13 election will determine which party controls the House, currently tied at 101-101.

On Tuesday, Governor Shapiro delivered his much-anticipated budget proposal for the Commonwealth, setting forth his policy and spending priorities for the Commonwealth’s 2024-25 fiscal year. The combined operating budget – inclusive of state, federal and special funds – totals $125.3 billion, an increase of 6.1%. Central components from Gov. Shapiro’s speech and budget proposal include:

• Increasing the state minimum wage from $7.25/hour to $15/hour. Also, increasing minimum wage for tipped workers to $9.00/hour.
• Funding reduction to the Primary Health Care Practitioner program by $2.8 million (34%).
• Significant increases in funding and program changes for K-12 education.
• Broad shift in the distribution model and allocation of higher education funds, including: Using a single funding model for state-related universities (Penn State, Pitt, Lincoln, and Temple), and those receiving state support, and implementing a 5% funding increase for all state-related universities; Merging PA State System of Higher Education (PASSHE) schools with community colleges, with a combined increase in funding of 15% alongside a new formula for distribution of funding moving forward; Capping in-state tuition at these institutions at $1,000 a semester for students whose families make less than the state’s median income.
• Initiatives that build on the governor’s recently announced statewide economic development plan, with new and increased funding for various programs and initiatives.
• Legalization and regulation of Adult Use Cannabis, with imposition of a 20% tax on the wholesale price.
• $4 million to erase medical debt for thousands of Pennsylvanians.
• Implementation of a skills games tax on gross gaming revenue from electronic skill games machines of 42%.

More information on the Department of Human Services budget proposal will be provided in a DHS briefing Friday morning that PACHC will participate in. Shapiro administration leaders will next meet with legislators to respond to questions and make their case on the governor’s budget proposal as the process continues to negotiate a final state budget and associated code bills by the deadline of June 30, 2024.

Two new educational videos now available from the National Rural Health Resource Center highlight the prevalence of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in the country’s rural communities and the steps that critical access hospitals and other small rural hospitals can take to improve access to much-needed pulmonary rehabilitation services.

The videos, developed as part of the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy-funded Expanding Rural Access to Pulmonary Care Demonstration Project, are designed to help hospital staff, administrators, board members and community members better understand the seriousness of COPD in rural communities and the benefits of improving access to local pulmonary rehab programs.

The first video, Understanding COPD and Pulmonary Rehabilitation, provides an overview of COPD — its symptoms and causes — and explains how rural-based pulmonary rehabilitation services help to restore independence and quality of life in COPD patients.

The second video, How to Launch a Pulmonary Rehab Program, highlights the benefits — to hospitals and their community — of operating rural pulmonary rehab programs, and shares practical advice and tips on how critical access hospitals and small rural hospitals can successfully build and sustain their own pulmonary rehab programs. The video includes a look at two critical access hospitals — Sparta Community Hospital in Illinois and Hood Memorial Hospital in Louisiana — that opened pulmonary rehab programs in 2023.

By showcasing the voices and experiences of health care professionals who treat COPD and manage pulmonary rehab programs, patients who have benefited from access to rural-based pulmonary rehab services, hospital administrators who have guided new programs at their facilities, and consultants who have supported hospitals in developing their programs, the videos illustrate the real-life impact rural pulmonary rehab programs can have and demonstrate that these programs can successfully operate in rural communities.

Hospitals considering whether establishing new pulmonary rehabilitation services might be a good fit, can access other Center-created resources that may help inform their organization’s planning and decision-making processes:

• A Rural Hospital Guide to Improving Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease
• Rural COPD Podcast Series
• Pulmonary Rehabilitation Campaign, part of the Customizable Communications Toolkit (which is referenced in these videos and includes free templates hospitals can use to educate patients and providers about pulmonary rehab services, and promote pulmonary rehab offerings)

Professional, non-clinical patient navigation is an evidence-based intervention that improves cancer outcomes from screening through survivorship. The American Cancer Society Leadership in Oncology Navigation (ACS LION) is a standardized training and credentialing program that helps navigators deliver this essential support to individuals, caregivers, and families experiencing cancer. The program meets the training requirements of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) for “Principal Illness Navigation” reimbursement and is aligned to professional oncology navigation (PONT) standards.

Enrollment is open.

Last week, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), through the Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response (ASPR), released voluntary health care specific cybersecurity performance goals (CPGs) and a new gateway website to help Health Care and Public Health (HPH) sector organizations implement these high-impact cybersecurity practices and ease access to the plethora of cybersecurity resources HHS and other federal partners offer. As outlined in the recent HHS Health Care Sector Cybersecurity concept paper, HHS is publishing the CPGs to help healthcare organizations, and healthcare delivery organizations in particular, prioritize implementation of high-impact cybersecurity practices. The HPH CPGs are designed to better protect the healthcare sector from cyberattacks, improve response when events occur, and minimize residual risk.

A new KFF publication discusses Health Professional Shortage Area (HPSA) designations for primary care providers, particularly the challenges with collecting data on policy measures intended to reduce shortages. Where Are the Nation’s Primary Care Providers? It’s Not an Easy Answer also discusses recruitment and retention incentive programs, who qualifies as a primary care provider, and rural-specific concerns.

Clinicians currently serving in the National Health Service Corps can receive additional funds to repay their health professions training loans in exchange for extending their service by one year. HRSA’s Bureau of Health Workforce has announced FY24 continuation award amounts of $20,000 per year for full-time clinicians, and $10,000 per year for those working half-time. If your contract ends between April1 and July 31, 2024, you have until Feb. 27 to apply. If your contract ends between Aug. 1 and Sept. 29, 2024, you have until May 24. Find out more at HRSA Continuation Contracts for National Health Service Corps Loans.

Pennie – Pennsylvania’s official health insurance marketplace – announced that a record nearly 435,000 Pennsylvanians are now covered with affordable, high-quality health coverage through Pennie. This represents a 17% increase compared to this time last year, far exceeding the average annual increase of 1%. Marketplace enrollment has increased by over 150,000 in the four years since Pennsylvania took over ownership and operations from the federal marketplace (healthcare.gov) – a 56% increase.