PathWays PA Policy Blog

Here is what we are learning from the news media regarding the state budget: The Philadelphia Inquirer Temple, Lincoln, Pennsylvania State, and Pittsburgh are now facing a 19 percent cut as opposed to a 50% cut - "although that, too, was in jeopardy Monday night after some of the relevant bills failed to muster enough votes in either the House or Senate. "  According to Bill Adolph, funding bills for the universities will likely get pushed to the fall.  In other words, according to The Patriot-News , these universities will go into the fiscal year with no state funding , although there will be time to revisit this choice before summer recess begins. K-12 education would regain about $269 million of the $1.1 billion cut in the Governor's Budget, including $100 million in the Accountability Block Grant program, which funds all-day kindergarten and other early childhood education programs and $130 million in basic education aid.  Philadelphia schools will receive $22 ...

PA’S HB 916 TO CUT UNEMPLOYMENT COMPENSATION, AND YOU CAN HELP A bill under consideration in the House, HB 916, would cut at least $632 million in benefits from unemployment compensation (UC) claimants by doing the following: Reducing benefits for claimants and the number of weeks some claimants will get UC Changing the definition of willful misconduct to include unintentional mistakes Denying UC to those who have lost their jobs for family or medical reasons, including those fleeing from domestic violence and caring for an elderly parent or sick family member Creating a 100% offset of severance payments, even when those payments are required by law or contract. However, despite these changes, HB 916 includes no revenue increases to tackle critical insolvency issues in the unemployment compensation system. Furthermore, because of some of the changes listed above, Pennsylvania would become ineligible for 2/3rds of Unemployment Compensation Stimulus money that is currently av...

Federal Policy Update HELP STOP THE REPEAL OF HEALTH CARE REFORM Congress has rescheduled the vote to repeal health care reform. It is now scheduled to take place on Wednesday, January 19. Join PHAN and sign the petition against repeal. Have a story about how the Affordable Care Act has helped you, your business or family member? Share it today! Email Athena at aford@pahealthaccess.org . As always, PHAN is continuing education efforts around the benefits of the Affordable Care Act. Do you know of a local organization that would like someone to explain what's in the new law and it's impact? PHAN can send staff anywhere in the state for presentations ranging from 20 minutes - 3 hours. Contact Athena for more info. On Facebook? Sign up for the Cause: Say NO to Repeal! Protect the Affordable Care Act! URGE YOUR MEMBERS OF CONGRESS TO ENSURE CHILD CARE FUNDS ARE NOT CUT The battles over funding for FY 2011 are still not settled. In December, the omnibus bill ...

If you're like me, you may have already broken some of your New Year's resolutions (perhaps I can exercise every day once I get over this cold :) ), but there are resolutions out there which are easy to keep.  Please take a look at the ideas below to help inspire yourself to commit to advocacy in the New Year (and thanks to the National Coalition for Literacy's 11 Ways to Recommit to Advocacy , which inspired me!) Remember what inspires you : 2010 was a hard year for many advocates, especially as we dealt with budget deficits , program cuts , and increased waiting lists for those in need.  2011 promises more challenges with new legislators coming into office and new budget cuts looming, but it can also be an opportunity.  Take a moment to remember why advocacy is important to you, whether it is a sense of justice, a personal story , or a client's success, and share that story with legislators and with friends.  And if 2011 starts getting you down, continue remembe...

Thank you to our friends at the Pennsylvania Health Access Network for putting this alert together. Over 43,000 Pennsylvanians rely on a program known as adultBasic to cover their medical costs. These are individuals who are unable to receive or afford coverage elsewhere. Unfortunately for the 43,000 in the program and over 400,000 on the waiting list, adultBasic is running out of money and will likely expire in a few months. Roseann, a mother of two who lives in Perkasie, Pennsylvania, is just one person on this program. Roseann suffers from a number of chronic conditions, including Crohn's disease, for which a single treatment is over $100,000. For the past six years she has relied on the low-cost insurance program, adultBasic. She makes too much for Medicaid and not enough to afford private insurance. When adultBasic expires, people like Roseann do not know how they are going to afford to live. You can see Roseann tell her own story below. After watching the video ...

Happy Holidays! This will be PathWays PA’s last E-Newsletter for 2010. Thank you all for your support this past year and we look forward to your continued support in 2011. Be sure to check this Policy Blog for information until our next E-Newsletter on January 10, 2011. Federal Policy Update CHILD NUTRITION REAUTHORIZATION IS NOW LAW Last week the new Child Nutrition Reauthorization, known as the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act, was signed into law. This law broadens the Afterschool Meal Program to cover all 50 states (currently it covers just 13), supports the expansion of direct certification for school meals, improves area eligibility rules so more family child care homes can use the CACFP program, makes important reforms in the nutritional quality of food served in schools and child care, and makes “competitive” foods sold or offered in schools more nutritious. To learn more about the act and its implementation join the Food Research and Action Center (FRAC) for a Webinar se...

PATHWAYS PA ADOPT-A-FAMILY PROGRAM With the holidays right around the corner, it is time for PathWays PA's Adopt-a-Family. The Adopt-a-Family program offers the families who receive PathWays PA services many of the joys of the holiday season they may otherwise be without. Thanks to the generous contributions of local donors, special memories of holidays past have been created for the families we serve. Thousands of client families have benefited from this program through the years! This year, client families will again be partnered with donors based on their size and the ages of their children. After being paired up with a client family, a wish list will be sent to the donors with the receiving family's genders, ages, clothing sizes and their holiday wishes. The donor family chooses to purchase any or all of the items on the clients' list, or substitute items that they feel the client may enjoy. Non-perishable food baskets are also welcomed. This program is a source...

(from our friends at the PA Health Access Network ) If you haven't already taken the time to sign our online petition "Save adultBasic" please do so now ! adultBasic is a critical program that helps nearly 46,000 Pennsylvanians who make a little too much for Medicaid. If this program dies, they might too. Kathy from Doylestown said, "I am a working mom with Lyme Disease. adultBasic allowed me to receive the care I needed. I was later diagnosed with a pre-cancerous condition of the cervix which needed an operation. Without adultBasic I would not have had the proper diagnosis and would have most likely died from cervical cancer." Help Kathy and 46,000 Pennsylvanians right now by going to our online petition and adding your name. Then forward the petition or this email to your family and friends! Also, you can join the Facebook Group to Save adultBasic .

Coffee Hour with Content: Come Network and Learn about the Need for Earned Sick Time Did you know that 46% of workers in Pennsylvania have NO earned sick time? In other words, 2.2 million Pennsylvanians either go to work sick or risk losing their pay when ill-or their jobs! The Coalition for Healthy Families and Workplaces is hosting a coffee hour where individuals can network while learning about the issue of earned sick time and current legislation working its way through the General Assembly and City Council. Come enjoy some free coffee and a light breakfast. WHEN: Thursday, August 12th 8:00 am -9:00 am ( You must RSVP by August 11 !) WHERE: Ballard Spahr, LLP, 1735 Market Street, 42nd Floor, Peter Mattoon Conference Room, Philadelphia, PA To register for the event visit: http://coffeehourwithcontent.eventbrite.com (You must RSVP to attend!) Please join the Coalition for Healthy Families and Workplaces to give workers the ability to earn sick time to care for them...

The Self-Sufficiency Standard for Pennsylvania 2010-2011 Philadelphia Release PathWays PA is proud to announce the Philadelphia release of the Self-Sufficiency Standard for Pennsylvania 2010-2011 ! WHEN: Wednesday, June 2nd 2:00-4:00 WHERE: United Way Building of Southeastern Pennsylvania, 7 Benjamin Franklin Parkway, Philadelphia PA The Standard measures how much income a family of a certain composition in a given place must earn to meet their basic needs without public or private assistance. The Standard is based on the cost of each basic need in each county—food, housing, health care, child care, transportation and taxes— determined independently using official and publicly available data. Join us to learn more about the Self-Sufficiency Standard from the President and CEO of PathWays PA, Carol Goertzel, and the author of the Standard, Dr. Diana Pearce. Please register for this event today! Federal House Expected to Vote on Unemployment Insurance, COBRA, and TANF...

While the health care debate continues in Washington, a major change is occurring to adultBasic, a program that helps low income Pennsylvanians afford insurance. Eligible Pennsylvanians without health care have been able to turn to adultBasic for coverage, even when they are on the waitlist. In Pennsylvania more than 40,000 are receiving the full benefits of the program, while the waitlist stands at over 300,000 . 3,500 individuals on the waitlist have chosen to buy into the program at full cost until they can access the program at the $35 per month cost. The amount of time someone will spend on the wait list varies, depending on when people apply as well as funding. Generally those on the waitlist must wait at least one year . The rate to buy into the program is approximately $330 a month. However, in March, this buy-in amount will increase by 80 percent. Individuals on the waitlist will then have to pay $600 per month on average for coverage. Individuals who buy into ad...