Easter Egg Hunt in Dallas

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At Home Showcase, you can eat bugs while you browse for a contractor

<p><strong>HARRISBURG &#8212;</strong> Gov. Tom Wolf says his proposed 2016-17 budget poses two distinct realities for Pennsylvania&#8217;s future:</p><p>&#8226; If passed, it will be one that ensures that government is responsive and responsible in fulfilling its duty to provide essential social services for older Pennsylvanians.</p><p>&#8226; If voted down, it will be one that will cause seniors hardship by way of significant property tax increases at the local level, higher out of pocket costs for prescription drug benefits, and waiting lists for home- and community-based services.</p><p>According to information provided by the state Department of Aging, the plan includes investments in education which will stave off increased property taxes. The budget also restores funding for human services programs, which includes long-term services and supports that enable older Pennsylvanians to age in place, and outreach to our rural communities wherein seniors are often hit the hardest.</p><p>&#8220;This budget demonstrates the core values prioritized by Gov. Wolf,&#8221; said Secretary of Aging Teresa Osborne. &#8220;The governor is proposing investments in caregiver services, the PACE program, and our 52 local Area Agencies on Aging and Senior Community Centers.&#8221;</p><p>Osborne said the budget allows her department to continue its mission to serve the state&#8217;s most vulnerable residents who need to access the services necessary to live a safe, healthy, quality of life with the dignity and respect.</p><p><strong>Department of Health continues efforts to</strong></p><p><strong>improve nursing home care in Pennsylvania</strong></p><p><strong>HARRISBURG &#8212;</strong> Pennsylvania Secretary of Health Dr. Karen Murphy last week met with nursing home industry stakeholders to provide an update on the department&#8217;s efforts to improve nursing home care in Pennsylvania, highlight progress made to date, and discuss next steps. Murphy also sought feedback from attendees to help guide future collaboration.</p><p>&#8220;Protecting seniors is a top priority for the Wolf administration, and though we are committed to addressing challenges around quality, delivery, and safety, we cannot do it alone,&#8221; Murphy said. &#8220;Working directly with industry partners ensures that we are taking the comprehensive steps needed to further enhance the quality in Pennsylvania&#8217;s long-term care facilities.&#8221;</p><p>Last year, the department accelerated efforts to evaluate regulatory processes in nursing homes. That initial review revealed that:</p><p>&#8226; 39 percent of nursing homes received just a one- or two-star rating in the Centers for Medicare &amp; Medicaid Services 5-star rating system.</p><p>&#8226; State long-term care regulations had not been updated since 1999.</p><p>&#8226; There was an overall decrease in nursing home complaints.</p><p>To address these concerns, Murphy said the department acted swiftly to make the following changes:</p><p>&#8226; Resumed taking anonymous complaints.</p><p>&#8226; Revised the Quality Assurance complaint intake process.</p><p>&#8226; Re-assigned and increased qualified surveyor staff.</p><p>&#8226; Approved additional positions.</p><p>&#8226; Instituted mandatory review/retraining for all of the department&#8217;s Division of Nursing Care Facility surveyors.</p><p>&#8226; Installed a new phone system to enhance complaint operations.</p><p>&#8226; Expanded collaboration with other agencies.</p><p>Murphy said the changes resulted in a 34 percent increase in the number of overall complaints, a more than 100 percent increase in the number of provisional licenses issued by the department, a nearly 200 percent increase in civil monetary penalties issued by the department, and an approximate 160 percent increase in the total enforcement actions taken by the department.</p><p><strong>Auditor General to carefully monitor treasury payments</strong></p><p><strong> for corrections operations during state budget impasse</strong></p><p><strong>HARRISBURG &#8212;</strong> Auditor General Eugene DePasquale said last week that his office will continuously monitor the State Treasurer&#8217;s payments for the Department of Corrections during the current budget impasse, while using the same auditing techniques and review of internal and operational controls that it uses each day to audit other commonwealth expenditures.</p><p>&#8220;As soon as information about the continued payments for prison spending was revealed in the budget hearings, I directed my team to focus on monitoring the payments,&#8221; DePasquale said. &#8220;In addition to ensuring that our prisons are safe, it is critical to ensure that treasury is restricting spending to only what is necessary and legally required until a full budget is enacted.&#8221;</p><p>DePasquale said while the unfinished budget battle rages on in the capitol, he will continue to keep a careful eye on every payment that goes beyond what is currently appropriated, noting that some people continue to question the legality of any spending beyond the current appropriation.</p><p><strong>Barletta bill to build on $3B in federal buildings savings</strong></p><p><strong>WASHINGTON &#8212;</strong> U.S. Rep. Lou Barletta, R-Hazleton, successfully guided his legislation to save taxpayers billions of additional dollars by reforming the management of federal office space and real estate through the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.</p><p>Barletta&#8217;s H.R. 4487 &#8212; the Public Buildings Reform and Savings Act of 2016 &#8212; also increases accountability and oversight of the agency responsible for securing and protecting thousands of federal buildings. The committee approved the legislation unanimously and moved it onto the House floor for consideration.</p><p>According the the congressman, Barletta&#8217;s efforts already have saved taxpayers nearly $3 billion since he became chairman of the committee&#8217;s Economic Development, Public Buildings, and Emergency Management Subcommittee in 2013.</p><p>&#8220;In the next five years, half of all federal GSA leases, or 100 million square feet of space, will expire,&#8221; Barletta said. &#8220;Since last Congress, we have worked to reduce the federal footprint through consolidating space and improving space utilization. And through those efforts, we have saved more than $2.9 billion dollars. With the large number of leases expiring in the near future, we have a good opportunity to save even more.&#8221;</p><p>To put the numbers into better perspective:</p><p>&#8226; 100 million square feet of office space equates to more than 46 Empire State Buildings worth of office leases that are about to expire.</p><p>&#8226; The legislation reforms the GSA, enabling the agency to better facilitate consolidations, reduce space, and negotiate the best possible office space lease deals to save billions of dollars.</p><p>&#8226; The bill also strengthens authorities of the Federal Protective Service in order to improve security at federal buildings.</p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">DePasquale </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/web1_TTL020216WBTAudit-1.jpg</photo0><caption0>DePasquale </caption0><photoCredit0></photoCredit0></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/web1_Barletta_Lou_2-1.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Barletta </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo1>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/web1_Barletta_Lou_2-1.jpg</photo1><caption1>Barletta </caption1><photoCredit1></photoCredit1></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/web1_Secretary-Karen-Murphy-1.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Murphy </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo2>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/web1_Secretary-Karen-Murphy-1.jpg</photo2><caption2>Murphy </caption2><photoCredit2></photoCredit2></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/web1_Wolf-2-1-1.jpg">
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<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Bill O&#8217;Boyle</p><p>boboyle@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div>

Capitol Roundup: Gov. Wolf says his proposed budget protects seniors