PA House Human Services — 2026-09-28

Thank you. Thank you. I want to say good morning to all of you here and just ask for your patience. We're having some technical difficulties, but as soon as they're resolved, we'll gavel the meeting to order. Thank you. Thank you. who got the technical issues squared away.

Here. Representative Bellman. Designation. Representative Benham. Designation. Representative Serrato.

Designation. Representative Ronnie Green.

Designation. Representative Kahn.

Designation. Representative Mays.

Representative Prokopiak. Designation.

Representative Vingut. Here.

Rip Anderson. Rip Ashline. Rip Plick. RIP Flood. RIP Hogan. RIP Labs. RIP McKenzie. RIP Hugh. RIP Rikard.

Rep. Margitas. Rep. Schlegel. Rep. Verabusch. Sorry. Rep. Weaknet. Rep. Rep. Hugh.

Senator Argyle.

Senate Bill 115 requires the Department of Human Services to establish a competency test that an individual without a high school diploma or GED can take to become a direct care staff in a personal care home or assisted living residence. The test must include an assessment of interpersonal communication skills, basic writing and reading comprehension, understanding of culture in diverse communities, awareness of mental and behavioral health needs, and other competencies specific to working in a personal care home or assisted living residence. Eligible foreign-educated or foreign-born individuals who legally reside in the U.S. could work as direct care staff without a high school diploma or GED, provided they meet all other requirements. The high school and GED requirements in PA code are abrogated insofar as they are inconsistent with this act.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Appreciate the consideration. It's good to be back. I helped to staff this committee about a week after I graduated from college, a long time ago, and things have changed since then. By 2040, our 65 and older population, I'm sure you've heard this many times, is expected to double. At the same time, nursing facilities have reported that direct care positions continue to remain vacant. Beds, sometimes entire wings, continue to be taken offline because there is just not enough people to staff them. Our nursing care facilities lost 14% of their workforce in just the last few years. On Senate Bill 115, the goal is this. This has already been mentioned. If you do not have a high school diploma or GED, this bill will allow you to take a skills competency exam if your goal is to become one of the direct caregivers, which we so desperately need. We passed this bill in the Senate 47 to 3. Again, I thank you for your consideration.

Yeah, I just want to commend Senator Argel and everybody for their work on this bill. I think it's a good proposal. Obviously, as the senator had stated, we do have a workforce shortage and we do have an aging population, part of it. But you know, obviously looking ahead, this fills two voids, helps people that are looking to get good quality employment and helps to fill the need in the workforce. So I would ask for an affirmative vote.

House Bill 1345 requires Medicaid coverage for treatment of menopause. Coverage includes at least all FDA-approved drugs and behavioral therapy. If needed, the department must apply for a state plan amendment or waiver from CMS to implement this act.

The amendment aligns the language with similar coverage requirements indicated in the Human Services Code and ensures the department maintains its ability to manage the program based on medical necessity and efficacy of treatment. Will the committee agree to the amendment?

Thank you, Chairman Williams, and your staff for putting forth this amendment, and it provides clarity on and approves the underlying bill, and I will be supporting the amendment. Thank you, Chairman.

Once again, I just want to thank the prime sponsors and the chairman for their work and our staff working together for this. And this requires the Department of Human Services to provide medical assistance coverage for hormonal and non-hormonal therapy. Oh, that's the bill. Oh, that's the bill. Yeah. So with the amendment, just clarifying that language and providing that codification, the existing coverage, I would ask for an affirmative vote. Thank you, Chairman.

Thank you, Chairman Williams. September is National Recovery Month in Pennsylvania and this signifies an important support for those who are in recovery from substance use disorder. According to the Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs, there's an estimated 22,000 individuals were admitted to treatment programs between 2025 and 26. Through 2023 and 24, approximately 175,000 people received funding for treatment through Medicaid programs. Currently, we have approximately 775 inpatient and outpatient drug and alcohol treatment facilities, and I would like to thank Chairman Williams on his collaboration on this important resolution. And I just wanted to give a shout-out this past weekend back home in the district. They held a recovery event in support of Recovery Church. And sometimes people look at resolutions and don't identify the importance of it, but we want to support those in recovery and give them all the encouragement and just seeing those young families, folks that have small children, and knowing what those lives would be like if those parents weren't in recovery. So anything we can do to support those programs through this resolution is much appreciated. So thank you, Chairman Williams, and I would ask for an affirmative vote.

Thank you, Chairman Williamson. Yeah, that is a heck of a thing to pronounce. Recognizing medium change, and I don't know that I pronounce it, achille-coa-dehydrogenase deficiency, MCAD, M-C-A-D for short, as a rare disease. MCAT is an inherent metabolic disorder. Both parents must carry a specific gene, and if they both carry that gene, there's a 25% chance that a child will be affected. And basically what it causes is the body cannot break down certain fats for energy. A baby or child who goes too long without eating during an illness, misfeeding, or even longer, a long night's sleep, can experience sudden drop in blood sugar with no warning. The result can be seizures, coma, sudden death, and it's really critical in the first two years. Before newborn screening, about 25% of affected children died during their first metabolic crisis. Today, every state screens for MCAD, and mortality has fallen below 3%. My grandson is one of those children. He is 7 months old and diagnosed at birth and doing well because he eats every 2 to 3 hours, day and night, and because his family knows the warning signs. But screening is not a cure. There is no cure. Management requires constant vigilance, frequent feedings, high-carbohydrate diet, and immediate access to emergency glucose are the first signs of an illness. Families shoulder this burden every day and often with little public awareness that condition exists. MCAT affects roughly 1 in 15,000 births in the United States, occurring most commonly in families of northern European descent. It is one of the fatty acid oxidation disorders. a group of conditions most people have never heard of until it touches their own. This resolution asks and recognizes that MCAD awareness and the importance of newborn screening to honor those families who manage it quietly every day. And I just wanted to give a shout-out to CHOP and also to UPMC because they have two world-class facilities right there. and we're blessed in Pennsylvania to have great hospitals throughout our Commonwealth, but these two world-class facilities that specialize in these types of disorders. So I would ask for an affirmative vote.

Thank you, Chairman. I just wanted to express the gratitude of Vision Corps, which is in my district, that helps folks who have vision impairment to live an independent and very high-quality life. And so they're very excited about White Cane Safety Day. Thank you for bringing this forward.

I thank the maker of the resolution for bringing it forward and will support the resolution today and encourage my colleagues to do so as well. Thank you, Chairman.

I thank the maker of the resolution for putting it forward and the chairman for bringing this resolution forward. And I would ask everybody for an affirmative vote to support the Chamber of Business and Industry. Thank you, Chairman.

Thank you.