PathWays PA E-Newsletter: May 18, 2009

May 29: Overlooked and Undercounted: Trying to Make Ends Meet in Pennsylvania


WHAT: Discussion of PathWays PA's latest publication -- Overlooked and
Undercounted: Struggling to Make End Meet in Pennsylvania

WHO: Carol Goertzel, President and CEO of PathWays PA
Dr. Diana Pearce, author of the study

WHEN: Friday, May 29th 10:00 - 12:00

WHERE: United Way of Southeastern Pennsylvania
7 Benjamin Franklin Parkway
Philadelphia, PA
For parking information please click here.

One-fifth of the 3.4 million households in Pennsylvania lack adequate income to meet their basic needs, representing a large and diverse group of families experiencing distress. That's one of the findings from PathWays PA's latest study of the economic needs of the state's working families, Overlooked and Undercounted: Struggling to Make Ends Meet in Pennsylvania.

The release of the report marks the first time that demographic data relating to the Self-Sufficiency Standard has been collected in the state. Previously, the Standard had simply been calculated but the number and types of households affected had not been determined.

PathWays PA partnered with the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry to produce the first edition of Overlooked and Undercounted. The report was developed by Diana M. Pearce, Ph.D., Director of the Center for Women's Welfare at the University of Washington School of Social Work.

Come and learn about the study directly from its author and the President and CEO of PathWays PA.

Please register by clicking here. Seating is limited. Registration is required. If you have problems registering online, please R.S.V.P. with Kate Scully at kscully@pathwayspa.org or 610-534-5022 x 255.



Help Ensure All Pennsylvanians are Able to Attend College!

Hundreds of thousands of Pennsylvanians are facing a financial emergency that is threatening their future as well as the economic future of the Commonwealth.
Pennsylvania is the sixth most expensive state in the nation for college costs, and the high cost of attending college means fewer students earn a degree
Only about a 1/4 of Pennsylvania adults has a bachelor’s degree – far fewer than in many competitor states
A Pennsylvanian with a bachelor’s degree will earn twice as much over the course of a lifetime as a person who has only a high school diploma – almost $1 million more
The Tuition Relief Act will help ensure that all Pennsylvanians are able to attend college and leave without the burden of tens of thousands of dollars of unmanageable college debt.

There are a number of ways you can take action to support the Tuition Relief Act.
Visit the website
Sign the online petition
Join the Facebook group
Attend a hearing on the Tuition Relief Act.


Join the Support for adultBasic and Smart Pharmacy!

The PA Health Access Network (PHAN) is seeking support in an effort to update and expand adultBasic, the subsidized health insurance program for working-age adults.

There are no General Fund dollars in this program now. It is funded by tobacco settlement funds and contributions made by the Blues insurance companies in lieu of taxes. The expansion PHAN seeks in this budget would be funded primarily by federal Medicaid dollars.

From the federal point of view, these federal dollars need to be existing Medicaid expenditures that are saved due to improvements in Pennsylvania’s management of the MA program.

Smart Pharmacy, also known as the pharmacy carve-out, would yield significant savings in the MA prescription drug benefit. These savings would be achieved by giving DPW authority to administer the drug prescription drug benefit for all 2 million MA recipients. Currently, DPW does not administer the benefit for 1.2 million MA recipients who are enrolled in managed care organizations in the southeast, south-central, and southwest parts of the state.

PHAN is sending a letter to members of the Pennsylvania Senate and House endorsing Smart Pharmacy as a way to save state funds, which are needed to avoid other cuts to Department of Public Welfare programs, and save federal funds, which are needed to fund adultBasic expansion

For more information on the letter and other issues PHAN is working on please visit http://www.pahealthaccess.org/.


Support Paid Sick Days!

Did you see the news? The swine flu is spreading so far and fast that state health officials may stop counting individual cases. The government recommends you stay home if you’re sick, but nearly 100 million workers don’t have a single paid sick day to care for a sick child, ailing parent or spouse, or other family member.

All workers in the United States need paid sick days. And this Monday, the Healthy Families Act will be introduced on Capitol Hill. The Healthy Families Act is federal legislation that would let workers earn up to seven paid sick days per year.

Please take a minute to urge your elected leaders to support paid sick days today by clicking here.