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Authors Posts by Richard Edley

Richard Edley

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Dr. Richard Edley is the lead executive for RCPA and is responsible for all aspects of operations and direction for the association. His professional career began in 1988 and most recently he was president and CEO of PerformCare/Community Behavioral HealthCare Network of Pennsylvania, Inc., a national, full-service, behavioral health managed care organization.

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The Department of Human Services has implemented the following staffing changes:


Johanna Fabian-Marks and Gwen Hauck are joining the secretary’s office. Both of these women have previously worked at the PA Insurance Department.

Policy Director Jen DeBell will be leaving DHS on September 15 to join PennAEYC (Pennsylvania Association for the Education of Young Children). Caitlin Palmer will be re-joining DHS as the new policy director.

Patricia Allan has been named as acting executive director of CHIP.

Dr. Dale Adair, the Acting Deputy Secretary of OMHSAS, has left the Commonwealth to head to South Carolina and Ellen DiDomenico will serve as Acting Deputy Secretary until further notice.

RCPA looks forward to working with each of these individuals in their new roles, helping to serve Pennsylvania’s most vulnerable citizens.

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The members and staff of RCPA are looking for ways to reach out to the unfortunate victims of Hurricane Harvey. Below are some facts about this devastating event:

(Courtesy of the New York Times)

• The National Weather Service said Tuesday that Harvey has now set a record for total rainfall from a single tropical cyclone in the continental United States, with two weather stations in Texas reporting total rainfall over 48 inches.

  • Local officials said there were 13 deaths in Texas so far that were storm-related or suspected to be storm-related. Officials in Houston confirmed on Tuesday afternoon that Sgt. Steve Perez, 60, died while driving to duty on Sunday.
  • The Houston Police Department has rescued more than 3,500 people from flooding since the storm began, Chief Art Acevedo said on Tuesday, up from about 2,000 a day earlier. The city fire chief, Samuel Peña, said his department had performed more than 400 rescues. The Harris County Sheriff’s Office did not have an updated figure on Tuesday, but said it was considerably higher than the roughly 2,200 rescues it reported on Monday.

• President Trump is visiting Texas, having arrived in Corpus Christi before traveling to Austin, the state capital.

The American Red Cross is encouraging people to donate money on its website or to text 90999 to donate $10. The organization is also asking for volunteers. Other organizations include the Salvation ArmySamaritan’s Purseand Heart to Heart International.

Please feel free to share this information as widely as possible. Thank you for being a part of these relief efforts.

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Governor Wolf announced that he has selected Teresa Miller, current Commissioner for the Pennsylvania Insurance Department, to lead the Department of Human Services, effective Monday, August 21. Commissioner Miller’s leadership, advocacy, and dedication to the people of the Commonwealth have been evident during her tenure at Insurance, and the Governor’s Office is confident that she will lead DHS with those same characteristics and commitment. As Commissioner Miller joins DHS, Jessica Altman will begin serving at the helm of the Pennsylvania Insurance Department.

The Office of Long-Term Living (OLTL) has announced the availability of a link to an online application for interested individuals to request employment services from the Pennsylvania Office of Vocational Rehabilitation (OVR).

OVR is a state agency within the Department of Labor and Industry whose mission is “to assist Pennsylvanians with a disability secure and maintain employment and independence.” A person with a disability can either refer themselves, or their service coordinator (SC), advocate, family member, or friend may make a referral.

As a reminder, participants must first seek employment services through OVR before utilizing employment services through the Office of Long-Term Living waivers. To contact the OVR district office in your area, use this link. OVR now has an online application to request services. SCs are strongly encouraged to assist OLTL participants in completing the online application using the attached instructions.

Any questions or concerns regarding the above, including to request an alternate format, should be addressed to Edward Butler via email or phone at 717-214-3718.

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A new Request for Information (RFI) has been released by the US Department of Labor. This RFI pertains to the overtime rule that defines those employees exempt from the minimum wage and overtime requirements of the Fair Labor Standards Act. In order to gather information to consider when deciding if and how to revise the regulation, the agency is requesting comments from the public.

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This weekend, Senator McConnell announced that there would be no vote on the BCRA this week, and the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) announced that there would not be a score of the BCRA, either. Additionally, the State Senate is scheduled to return today in the midst of a possible state budget action. Because of this, Wednesday’s press conference is being postponed.  We will keep you updated on future events.

RCPA has been working with a multi-association group to oppose the federal proposed American Health Care Act (AHCA)/ Better Care Reconciliation Act (BCRA). We previously sent a letter to Senators Casey and Toomey and are now planning a letter to the editor and press conference. The effort has been led by the Hospital and Healthsystem Association of PA (HAP), but has been a very collaborative initiative, and RCPA will be speaking at the press conference along with several other associations. We encourage you to attend this event which is being held at the Capitol in Harrisburg on Wednesday, July 19 at 11:00 am. For additional information contact Jack Phillips, Director of Government Affairs.