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State

RCPA will be hosting our 2023 Capitol Day on Monday, April 24 and will hold a press conference and rally between 12:30 pm – 1:30 pm on the front steps of the State Capitol (outside the Main Rotunda). This is your opportunity to show a shared voice to the legislature, administration, and governor’s office on matters that impact providers and those they serve. Members from all RCPA divisions are requested to attend and schedule appointments with their Senate and House legislators to discuss the state budget, legislation, and regulations that impact the services of our members.

Detailed information will follow, but if you have questions or suggestions regarding our 2023 Capitol Day, please contact Jack Phillips, Director of Government Affairs.

House Republican Appropriations Chairman Seth Grove will lead a roundtable discussion with Medicaid (MA) Managed Care Organizations (MCOs) on February 7, 2023, at 10:00 am.

Committee Chairman Grove will be joined by House members and the following testifiers:

  • Emily Katz, Executive Director of PAMCO;
  • Joanne McFall, Market President of Keystone First;
  • Matthew Hurford, President/CEO of Community Care Behavioral Health;
  • James Schuster, Chief Medical Officer of UPMC Insurance Services Division;
  • Jack Carroll, Executive Director of Cumberland-Perry Drug & Alcohol Commission;
  • John Koehn, Market President of Community HealthChoices, AmeriHealth Caritas;
  • Justin Davis, Plan President/CEO of PA Health & Wellness; and
  • Brendan Harris, Vice President of Community HealthChoices, UPMC Health Plan.

The hearing will be held in Room 60 East Wing, Main Capitol, State Capitol Complex in Harrisburg. The hearing will also be streamed live.

Governor Shapiro is directing all state agencies, boards, and commissions to compile a catalog of the licenses, certificates, and permits they issue – including the statutory authority governing the length of time they must process applications and the application fee charged by each agency. Commonwealth agencies will have 90 days to send this information to the Governor’s Office, which will then review, analyze, and establish efficient application processing times for all occupational permits or licenses based on agency recommendations. Once those recommendations are put in place, if an agency does not respond to an applicant before the date-certain, the agency will be required to refund the application fee.

Under this Executive Order, the Governor’s Office will also conduct a review of the existing digital services that Pennsylvanians use to apply for licenses, certificates, and permits and work to modernize those application platforms and services to better serve Pennsylvanians.

Unpredictability and long wait times for Commonwealth-issued licenses, certificates, and permits can create unnecessary barriers for Pennsylvania workers and businesses. For example, an NPR analysis from 2021 found that Pennsylvania had some of the longest wait times in the country for issuing nursing licenses. More than half of the nursing applicants who applied in Pennsylvania that year waited at least three months to hear back.

In addition to nursing licenses, the Commonwealth issues hundreds of licenses, certificates, and permits, from barber and salon licenses to teacher certifications to business permits. Under the direction of the Governor, the Administration will work expeditiously to ensure Pennsylvanians get responses in a timely manner — and the Shapiro Administration will have real skin in the game. Governor Shapiro is making clear his Administration will be customer-service oriented and that state government will work harder to get them a response, so that they can pursue their dreams.

Read Executive Order 2023-07, Building Efficiency in the Commonwealth’s Permitting and Licensing Processes, here.

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The PA House Republican leadership team has just announced committee chairs for the 2023/24 season. You can view the full listing below:

  • Rep. Steve Mentzer (R-Lancaster) – Aging and Older Adult Services
  • Rep. Dan Moul (R-Adams) – Agriculture and Rural Affairs
  • Rep. Seth Grove (R-York) – Appropriations
  • Rep. Lynda Schlegel Culver (R-Northumberland/Montour) – Children and Youth
  • Rep. Joe Emrick (R-Northampton) – Commerce
  • Rep. Jim Marshall (R-Beaver) – Consumer Affairs
  • Rep. Jesse Topper (R-Bedford/Fulton) – Education
  • Rep. Martin Causer (R-Cameron/McKean/Potter) – Environmental Resources and Energy
  • Rep. Kate Klunk (R-York) – Ethics
  • Rep. Keith Greiner (R-Lancaster) – Finance
  • Rep. David Maloney (R-Berks) – Game and Fisheries
  • Rep. Russ Diamond (R-Lebanon) – Gaming Oversight
  • Rep. Kathy Rapp (R-Warren/Crawford/Forest) – Health
  • Rep. Doyle Heffley (R-Carbon) – Human Services
  • Rep. Tina Pickett (R-Bradford/Wyoming) – Insurance
  • Rep. Rob Kauffman (R-Franklin) – Judiciary
  • Rep. Ryan Mackenzie (R-Lehigh) – Labor and Industry
  • Rep. Mindy Fee (R-Lancaster) – Liquor Control
  • Rep. R. Lee James (R-Venango/Crawford) – Local Government
  • Rep. Aaron Kaufer (R-Luzerne) – Government Oversight
  • Rep. Carl Walker Metzger (R-Somerset) – Professional Licensure
  • Rep. Brad Roae (R-Crawford/Erie) – State Government
  • Rep. Donna Oberlander (R-Armstrong/Clarion) – Tourism and Recreational Development
  • Rep. Kerry Benninghoff (R-Centre/Mifflin) – Transportation
  • Rep. Rich Irvin (R-Franklin/Huntingdon) – Urban Affairs
  • Rep. Mark Gillen (R-Berks) – Veterans Affairs and Emergency Preparedness