Harrisburg, PA – The Pennsylvania Department of Aging (PDA) continues its commitment to provide more transparency and accountability of Pennsylvania’s Area Agencies on Aging (AAAs) network with its new Comprehensive Agency Performance Evaluation, or CAPE – with the ultimate goal of ensuring older adults are protected and safe in their communities.
In a recent op/ed, Secretary of Aging Jason Kavulich touted the rollout of the new overhauled approach to monitor the performance of the AAAs, which provide a host of services to older Pennsylvanians, including protective services. In April, for the first time ever, PDA began posting performance results on its website for AAAs monitored under CAPE. There are results for the following eight AAAs currently on PDA’s website with more to follow in the coming months:
- Armstrong
- Beaver
- Centre
- Chester
- Lehigh
- Mifflin/Juniata
- Venango
- York
Check out what Pennsylvanians are reading about PDA’s ongoing work with protecting older Pennsylvanians and increasing transparency:
Times Leader: Department of Aging delivers on transparency, accountability in how we protect older adults - Times Leader
By Jason Kavulich, Secretary of Aging
Under the Shapiro Administration, the Department of Aging is getting stuff done, working with state and community partners to map out and build a bright future for older adults in Pennsylvania.
We’re tackling enormous, overdue system improvements to meet the needs of a rapidly growing older adult population and keep them safe from harm.
Earlier this spring, I announced the biggest system overhaul this agency has seen in decades – the rollout of the Department’s new Comprehensive Agency Performance Evaluation, or CAPE, an innovative tool designed to boost transparency and accountability of Pennsylvania’s Area Agencies on Aging (AAAs) Network, which provide a host of services to older adults, including protective services.
In April, we began publicly posting performance results under this new monitoring system on our website for the first time in the history of the Department of Aging.
This is unprecedented transparency, and it’s been achieved under the Shapiro Administration.
Thanks to the hard work of dozens of professionals, including protective services and data experts, the public can now see how well their local AAA is performing in major program areas, such as investigative activities related to suspected elder abuse and helping older adults at home with tasks of daily living.
CAPE results can be viewed here, along with other relevant key AAA performance data that the Department has already begun posting – information that has never been publicly shared by the Department.
Few – if any – other states are now providing as much transparency about the performance of their AAAs as Pennsylvania.
The Department is also moving away from evaluating AAAs on a legacy “pass/fail system” that left little room for performance improvement. Now, it is ensuring AAAs now undergo more robust, in-depth evaluations that more quickly and accurately identify and correct deficiencies.
Instead of simply labeling each AAA as “compliant” or “noncompliant” based on weighted categories in the old system. The old system allowed lesser-weighted categories to be hidden by greater-weighted categories and thus, reach a passing grade. But CAPE requires every metric to meet a certain threshold. If that threshold is not met in any one area, the department considers that AAA to be deficient and performance improvement plans are triggered.
CAPE further requires direct action to correct any metric that does not meet the department’s standard. This means that CAPE will result in more robust, comprehensive, meaningful performance improvement plans than under the old system. And most importantly, CAPE will lead to more substantive improvements in care for older adults.
Each CAPE category – which is publicly posted on the website – details the AAA’s performance and will also trigger additional technical assistance from the department if needed. For the first time, the department’s contracts with the AAAs will spell out clear consequences if performance doesn’t improve.
Protecting older adults is my top priority as Secretary, and we are making real progress. For example, thanks to the department’s increased efforts with AAAs, the Delaware County AAA more than doubled its compliance rate for timely determinations in older adult protective services – from 40% in 2024 to 89% in 2025 – and the Westmoreland County AAA more than tripled its compliance rate.
That means older adults in these counties are receiving the assistance and care they need faster and more efficiently than before.
While we continue that work, Gov. Josh Shapiro is proposing millions more in his 2025-26 budget to strengthen our oversight capacity and strengthen the daily services the AAA network provides to older Pennsylvanians, like transportation, meals and social gatherings, among others.
Older adult professionals do some of the toughest work there is, but when that work isn’t up to our high standard, we need an objective, consistent, constructive system to identify these deficiencies and help them improve – with clear consequences if they don’t.
That’s the right thing to do for the older adults we serve, and that is what we’re working hard to deliver.