Regulations
October 21 2008 Announcement from the Department of Public Welfare:
On October 21, 2008, Department of Public Welfare (DPW) announces that the final regulations will not be published before the end of 2008 and that the final-form regulations should be expected to be published in early 2009 and, they hope, to take effect in July 2009.
October 15, 2008 IRRC Comments:
The Independent Regulatory Review Commission issued its formal comments to the proposed regulations on October 15th. Click here to view the IRRC comments.
September 18, 2008 Testimony:
Alissa Halperin of PALCA testified before the House Aging and Older Adult Services Committee on the Department of Public Welfare’s Proposed Assisted Living Regulations. Read the testimony of other PALCA members and all those who testified at the 9/18 hearing here.
September 15 Deadline for Public Comment:
The public comment period on the proposed regulations ended on September 15. Click here to view the public comments submitted by all commentators.
PALCA Submits Comments to DPW & IRRC
On September 10, PALCA submitted comments on the proposed assisted living regulations to the Department of Public Welfare and the Independent Regulatory Review Commission. Read them here.
Proposed Regulations
On August 9, 2008, the Department of Public Welfare published the Proposed Assisted Living Regulations #14-514. The regulations fall far short of what is needed to ensure that Pennsylvania’s elderly and those with disabilities receive adequate care in safe surroundings.
To view the regulations, click here: http://www.irrc.state.pa.us/Documents/SRCDocuments/Regulations/2712/AGENCY/Document-10301.pdf
The regulations for personal care homes served as the platform from which the state proposes to build assisted living licensure. We note, at the outset, that several of the proposed requirements represent crucial enhancements to the personal care home regulatory requirements. These are essential changes for meeting the care needs of the population that assisted living residences are intended to serve. These are changes we wholly support. However, more provisions were left exactly the same as in the personal care home system, even though changes are critical for ensuring that assisted living facilities are able to safely serve Pennsylvania’s assisted living consumers.
Fundamental changes must be made to the proposed regulations before they are finalized to ensure that assisted living facilities are equipped, enabled, and accountable for providing all residents with quality care, provided by appropriate numbers of adequately trained staff in a home-like setting that is safe, accessible, and stimulating.
We do not believe that the regulations make sufficient strides towards 1) meeting residents’ care needs, 2) guaranteeing that all consumers have meaningful rights of which they are aware, and that they are free to exercise their rights, 3) assuring a safe and accessible physical site, 4) ensuring care is provided by appropriate numbers of adequately trained staff, and 5) responding to critical unanswered questions that the public needs answered.
We encourage you to learn more by clicking on the following links, which provide:
A guide to writing and submitting comments on these proposed regulations.
A sample comment letter for readers to use as a model for their own letters, if needed.
Section-by-section problems with the proposed regulations that must be remedied before they are finalized.
Line-by-line suggested changes (with comments) to the proposed regulations.