by Pennsylvania Department of Health
On Wednesday, Dec. 20, the Pennsylvania Department of Health and the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services celebrated the Shapiro Administration’s first-year wins toward improving public health for all Pennsylvanians by investing resources and elevating collaboration between state agencies focused on improving public health.
In the Departments of Health and Human Services, coordinated efforts focused on expanding maternal health programming, supporting Emergency Medical Services, building stronger long-term care communities, and improving access to vital records.
“We are striving to continually improve existing services and create new ones that benefit people across the Commonwealth to meet our overall vision of a healthy Pennsylvania for all,” said Acting Secretary of Health Dr. Debra Bogen. “By working together, we are making progress toward some of those goals this year.”
“Together, DHS and DOH are supporting access to critical services for our Emergency Medical Service providers while also sharing resources and knowledge as part of the first-ever investment in addressing maternal mortality,” said Secretary of Human Services Dr. Val Arkoosh. “None of this work could be accomplished by just one department, and I’m grateful for my partners across the Shapiro Administration.”
Some of those first-year wins include:
Expanding maternal health programming and support
- In the Commonwealth’s first-ever investment in addressing maternal mortality, $2.3 million was included in this year’s budget to expand programming to allow for the implementation of prevention strategies to reduce maternal mortality and morbidity.
- The funding will be used to build capacity in the Department of Health’s Bureau of Family Health to support the administration of the Maternal Mortality Review Committee (MMRC). It will also help implement recommendations from the MMRC to decrease maternal deaths in Pennsylvania.
- Pennsylvania has added six new Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) mobile units to reach more women, infants, and children in underserved areas with the resources they need closer to home. Additional mobile units will be added in the coming months.
- Each WIC Mobile Unit is customized to operate as a fully functional WIC satellite clinic that will reach both rural and urban areas and will help meet the needs of people facing transportation barriers. The fleet of clinics on wheels is increasing participation in the WIC program, delivering greater access and equity throughout Pennsylvania.
- Governor Shapiro signed SB 500 into law in November, expanding Medicaid coverage of donor human milk for critically ill babies whose moms can’t produce their own or enough milk.
Supporting emergency medical services and responding to emergencies quickly
- Support for Pennsylvania’s Emergency Medical Services of $20.7 million to increase mileage rates for ambulance services, ensuring that EMS workers and first responders are properly reimbursed for the critical care they provide.
- The investment in EMS protects critical access to health care in a state where EMS agencies respond to nearly 24 million 911 calls each year, and 26% of the residents live in rural areas.
- The Shapiro Administration worked quickly to stand up a PEMA dashboard and health resource center in the wake of the East Palestine train derailment, serving nearly 600 residents in person at the Darlington Township building by March.
- In late March, Governor Shapiro announced the formation of a health resource network to directly connect Pennsylvania residents with local providers in response to the derailment.
- DOH worked with local health care providers in Beaver and Lawrence counties to meet any long-term needs of residents.
- Residents with ongoing derailment-related health concerns can call the Pennsylvania Department of Health hotline (877-PA-HEALTH).
Building stronger long-term care communities
- To help address the variety of challenges facing the long-term care industry, earlier this year, the Department of Health consolidated its older Pennsylvania care efforts into the Long-Term Care Transformation Office, which provides guidance and assistance to communities that care for older adults. The office works with multiple state agencies and stakeholder organizations to understand industry challenges and implement positive change.
- The office is focused on long-term care workforce resiliency, infection prevention and control, and emergency preparedness, as well as sustainable outbreak response operations to help protect residents. Its work will directly improve care for older adults and others in these communities.
Improving access to vital records
- The Department of Health’s birth amendment unit eliminated a backlog of birth certificate amendment requests. In January 2023, when Governor Shapiro took office, the backlog stood at 6,200 requests. By July, that backlog was eliminated.
- While the backlog was being addressed, the approximately 2,400 new amendment requests that come in each month were completed on schedule.
- Streamlining processes and increasing efficiency were key to this accomplishment. With the backlog now eliminated, the Department is working to further decrease response times for birth amendment requests.
The Shapiro Administration continues to promote healthy behaviors, prevent injury and disease, and assure the safe delivery of quality health care for all people in Pennsylvania.
