SENATE APPROVES HEALTHNET BILL EXTENDING INSURANCE TO YOUNG ADULTS

The Senate unanimously approved HealthNET PA legislation Wednesday that would extend health insurance coverage to adult dependent children up to the age of 30.  

Senate Bill 189, sponsored by Sen. Jake Corman (R-Centre), would extend insurance to adult dependent children, up to the age of 30, who are not married, have no dependents, are residents of the Commonwealth or are enrolled as a full-time student at an institution of higher education and are not provided insurance coverage or eligible for government benefits.  

The largest segment of the uninsured in Pennsylvania -- roughly half -- is young adults age 18 to 34. 

The 15-bill HealthNET PA package includes legislation that would develop or expand health care clinics across Pennsylvania to provide "medical homes" for 175,000 working-poor clients and ease pressure on hospital emergency rooms.  The HealthNET PA plan would expand access to health care and medicine to more than 500,000 uninsured and low-income working Pennsylvanians. It would utilize information technology to control costs and reduce health care-associated infections, and provide expanded insurance options for employers and families, and will incorporate the concepts of disease prevention and wellness. 

On Friday, Senator Corman joined Sen. Lloyd Smucker (R-Lancaster), Sen. Mike Brubaker (R-Lancaster) and Sen. Ted Erickson (R-Delaware) at a news conference at SouthEast Lancaster Health Services to discuss HealthNET PA.
 Senator Corman
 News Conference  

GOP LEADERS SEEK TO SET CORE GUIDELINES FOR FEDERAL STIMULUS SPENDING 

Senate Republican leaders announced Wednesday their sponsorship of a resolution outlining core principles that the Senate will follow when determining how federal stimulus money will be spent in Pennsylvania.  

The resolution is sponsored by Senate President Pro Tempore Joe Scarnati (R-Jefferson), Senate Majority Leader Dominic Pileggi (R-Delaware), Senate Majority Whip Jane Orie (R-Allegheny) and Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Jake Corman (R-Centre). 

They said that funding should be distributed based on the following principles:     

• Maximize the use of the funds to address current deficits and revenue shortfalls. 
• Avoid the permanent expansion of current programs and the creation of new programs and ensure funds are appropriated to programs that will most efficiently utilize the money to stimulate the economy, create and preserve jobs and protect taxpayers. 
• Avoid the acceptance of federal stimulus funds that require the permanent expansion of benefits and thereby place additional costs on the Commonwealth and its taxpayers.

The senators said the General Assembly has the authority under the Pennsylvania Constitution and State law to determine how the federal funds should be appropriated. 

SENATE APPROVES BILL REAUTHORIZING HEALTH CARE COST CONTAINMENT COUNCIL

The Senate passed legislation Tuesday reauthorizing the Pennsylvania Health Care Cost Containment Council (PHC4).  

Under Senate Bill 89, sponsored by Sen. Pat Vance (R-Cumberland), PHC4 would be reauthorized until 2014.  The council collects data from hospitals, freestanding ambulatory surgery centers and some managed care plans, and provides it to consumers in a comparative format so they may make educated decisions on the purchase of their health care.   

PHC4 has required legislation to extend its existence periodically since its founding in 1986.  The authorizing statute expired most recently on June 30, 2008, and the council was temporarily extended by executive order until June 30, 2009.    

The bill now goes to the House of Representatives for consideration. 
  

SENATE APPROVES TRANSFER OF FUNDS TO EASE BUDGET DEFICIT 

The Senate approved legislation Wednesday sponsored by Senate Environmental Resources and Energy Committee Chair Mary Jo White (R-Venango) to transfer much-needed revenue into the state's General Fund budget, helping to close a budget deficit without increasing taxes on working Pennsylvanians. 

Senate Bill 490 would transfer $174 million from the Oil and Gas Lease Fund to the General Fund to help address the state's $2.3 billion budget deficit. The bill will be sent to the House of Representatives for consideration.  

Senator White said: "The governor's plan for balancing the budget is predicated on transferring $174 million to the General Fund. This legislation accomplishes that. It does so while leaving more than enough money to fund Pennsylvania's environmental programs." 

(For a list of the many investments the General Assembly and governor have made in environmental programs in recent years, please see Fast Facts, below.)
 

SENATE VOTES TO ALLOW BAIL DENIALS FOR SERIOUS CRIMES, DANGEROUS INDIVIDUALS

The Senate approved a measure March 23 introduced by Sen. Pat Browne (R-Lehigh) that would allow for the denial of bail in cases involving serious crimes or dangerous individuals. 

Specifically, Senate Bill 366 would allow for the denial of bail for offenses where the maximum sentence is life imprisonment or for cases where there are no conditions other than imprisonment that will reasonably protect public safety. 

In 1998, voters amended the Pennsylvania Constitution regarding bail.  However, the language in the Judicial Code, which corresponded to the procedure in the Pennsylvania Constitution, was not changed. The measure now goes to the House of Representatives for consideration. 

Senator Browne said: "The voters made it clear that they want dangerous individuals and those charged with the most serious offenses kept off the street. This legislation would empower courts to keep those offenders incarcerated."
 

BILL DENYING PUBLIC BENEFITS FOR ILLEGAL ALIENS GOES TO FULL SENATE 

The Senate State Government Committee, chaired by Sen. Chuck McIlhinney (R-Bucks), unanimously approved legislation sponsored by Senate President Pro Tempore Joe Scarnati (R-Jefferson) that would ensure illegal aliens living in Pennsylvania do not receive public benefits, such as Medicaid, welfare, and in-state college tuition.   

Senate Bill 9 now goes to the full Senate for consideration. 

Senator Scarnati said: "This has been an issue that I have been pushing very strongly for a number of years, but with the economy in crisis and folks losing their jobs, it is even more crucial that we stop providing benefits to individuals who are living outside the law." (For more on Senate Bill 9, please see In the Spotlight, below.)
       

EDUCATION COMMITTEE ENDORSES SAFE SCHOOLS LEGISLATION

Working to make the Commonwealth’s schools safer for learning, the Senate Education Committee, chaired by Sen. Jeffrey Piccola (R-Dauphin), approved legislation he sponsored to reform Pennsylvania’s Safe Schools Law by enforcing tougher school hiring policies and revising the state’s school violence reporting system. 

Senator Piccola’s bills would resolve several issues raised in a special performance audit released in recent months by the state Auditor General concluding that the state Department of Education failed to properly implement and enforce Pennsylvania’s Safe Schools Law.  In response to the audit, the senator crafted a new model in which the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency will share the duty of implementing the law with the Office of Safe Schools in the Department of Education.   

Senate Bill 55 establishes a lifetime ban on working in schools for those who have been convicted of serious violent offenses, including sexual violence and crimes against children.  The legislation also includes a 10-year school employment ban for those convicted of first-degree misdemeanors.  

Senate Bill 56 would reform the Safe Schools Law requirement of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between school entities and police.  Aside from the strengthening of the MOU, which is required by the law, the bill would assure that crimes occurring on school property are reported accurately to police and the Department of Education and hold administrators accountable for intentional failure to comply with the Law.   

Senate Bill 55 and Senate Bill 56 will be referred to the full Senate for consideration.

COMMITTEE APPROVES LEGISLATION IMPROVING SAFETY OF FAMILY DAY CARE HOMES 

Legislation sponsored by Sen. Jeffrey Piccola (R-Dauphin) that would require all family day care home providers to have liability insurance as a condition of their certification was approved Wednesday by the Senate Public Health and Welfare Committee, chaired by Sen. Ted Erickson (R-Delaware). 

In addition to requiring liability insurance, Senate Bill 59 will require family day care providers to disclose certain information to parents prior to enrollment, including any inspection summaries issued by the Department of Public Welfare, the day care's policies, and emergency plans. The bill would also allow DPW to immediately notify parents and shut down a family day care in the event of an emergency circumstance when the health and safety of the children at the facility are threatened.   

Senator Piccola unveiled a similar bill last year in response to concerns raised by constituents who contacted him after their son was critically injured while under the supervision of a family day care provider. The legislation will be referred to the full Senate for consideration.