Jun. 01, 2020
HARRISBURG – On Tuesday, May 26, legislation sponsored by Rep. Gary W. Day (R-Lehigh/Berks), chairman of the House Aging and Older Adult Services Committee, was approved by his committee. This legislation would establish a grant program to provide funding for long-term care facilities in Pennsylvania so they can acquire personal protective equipment to help combat the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We have been consistently hearing that personal protective equipment is an essential tool in the fight against the coronavirus pandemic,” said Day, who serves as chairman of the committee. “We want long-term care facility staff to have the gloves, face masks, gowns, face shields and other personal protective equipment they need to reduce the spread of the virus.”
Day’s
House Bill 2509 would establish the Long-Term Care Facility Personal Protective Equipment Reimbursement Grant Program. The Pennsylvania Department of Aging would be responsible for creating requirements and standards for the program, including an application process.
The funding source for the program remains to be identified. Day said the money could come from federal dollars that may be provided for future COVID-19 relief efforts or the state may look for a funding source during the state budget process.
The bill ensures the grant cannot cover more than 50% of the purchase cost of personal protective equipment acquired by long-term care facilities. It also stipulates the grants cannot be used to reimburse the costs of personal protective equipment purchased or reimbursed by another federal or state grant program.
“We put a stipulation in the bill to prevent double dipping, or a situation where a long-term care facility may be reimbursed for the same mask from several different programs,” Day said. “The whole point of the program is to get more personal protective equipment into the hands of staff who need it.”
Day’s bill now heads to the full House for consideration.
Representative Gary Day
187th District
Pennsylvania House of Representatives
Media Contact: Abby Krueger
717.260.6617
akrueger@pahousegop.com
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