Governor Josh Shapiro’s proposed 2026-27 budget includes $900,000 in state funds to invest in a reentry supports pilot program to improve transitions from State Correctional Institutions.
Reentry support programs can reduce overdose deaths and recidivism, which helps families and communities and saves the Commonwealth money.
Doylestown, PA – Today, the Shapiro Administration highlighted Governor Josh Shapiro’s 2026-27 Budget Proposal, which invests $900,000 in state funding for the Investments in Health pilot program. This program will provide pre-release Medicaid services for individuals with high-risk health conditions who are leaving State Correctional Institutions and connect individuals to intensive case management post-release, setting them up for better health and success when they return to their communities.
During a visit to the Bucks County Diversion, Assessment, Restoration, and Treatment Center, Pennsylvania Department of Human Services (PA DHS) Secretary Dr. Val Arkoosh, Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs (DDAP) Deputy Secretary Kelly Primus, and Department of Corrections (PADOC) Director of the Bureau of Reentry Coordination Danny McIntyre toured the facility and discussed reentry supports with local leaders. Secretary Arkoosh shared how the Investments in Health program will provide access to health care and services like substance use disorder care and medication to those leaving incarceration, helping ease their return to their communities and saving lives.
The proposed investment of state funds for reentry supports allows Pennsylvania to leverage additional federal matching funds, which will bring total funding to $2.7 million. Reducing recidivism changes lives, benefits communities, and saves money. A five percent reduction in recidivism would save approximately $2 million for the Commonwealth.
“As a former County Commissioner, I have seen firsthand the essential work of providing reentry services to people who are transitioning from incarceration back to their communities. Reentry supports are a proven strategy to assist individuals and families and set people up for success,” said Secretary Arkoosh. “By making strategic investments through the Medicaid program, we have an opportunity to save lives from overdose deaths, improve public safety, and reduce the chance that people will return to a State Correctional Institution. This funding will help Pennsylvanians right away, and it will save the Commonwealth money and resources long term.”
“Everyone deserves equitable access to substance use disorder treatment and supports, and this expansion would help to make that happen by meeting people where they’re at,” said Deputy Secretary Primus. “Having the right supports, at the right time, at the right place helps to reduce recurrences of use as well as recidivism rates – a win-win for strengthening our public health and a collective objective of the Shapiro Administration.”
The Investments in Health program will provide funding in three key areas:
- Reentry Supports: $900,000 in state funds to leverage additional federal funding for a total of $2.7 million that will support a set of pre-release Medicaid services for incarcerated individuals returning to their communities from State Correctional Institutions.
- Food is Medicine: $900,000 in state funds to leverage federal investment for a total of $2.3 million to support a pilot program that will bring medically tailored meals to Medicaid recipients with diet-sensitive health conditions.
- Housing Stability: $1 million in state funding to leverage additional federal funding for a total of $2.5 million to launch a pilot that will help Pennsylvanians experiencing homelessness connect to stable housing and services.
“Stable housing is one of the strongest predictors of successful reentry, and it is critical to reducing recidivism,” said Director McIntyre. “When people leave incarceration with a safe place to live and the support needed to maintain that stability, they are far more likely to stay connected to treatment, secure employment, and rebuild their lives. These investments help ensure that the progress someone makes while incarcerated continues in the community."
Several years in planning, the Bucks County Diversion, Assessment, Restoration, and Treatment (DART) Center, provides a significant opportunity to divert individuals with serious mental illness and co-occurring disorders like substance use from incarceration as well as to reduce length of stay in incarceration, which is significantly higher for individuals with serious mental illness than the general population. The DART, which opened in March 2026, provides safe short-term assessment and stabilization, secure restoration to competency if needed, and an opportunity to promote greater community integration through therapy and daily living skill development so individuals can live more independently in the community.
“The DART allows individuals with mental illness to be treated and healed, not just punished out of fear and lack of community resources,” said Donna Duffy Grimm, Bucks County Administrator for Behavioral Health/Developmental Programs. “It reflects Bucks County’s commitment to the value of treatment over incarceration and the provision of a safe place which reduces fear, inspires hope, and empowers lives.”
Building on Three Years of Progress
Under Governor Shapiro’s leadership, the Shapiro-Davis Administration has advanced initiatives to ease reentry to communities and expand options for those seeking clemency and pardons including:
- Expanding services to provide people returning to the workforce from the justice system with on-the-spot birth certificates, helping to remove a significant barrier that can stand in the way of work, training, housing, and reentry.
- Expanding safe and responsible AI use across state government by using AI to assist with transferring information from handwritten applications for clemency into the Board of Pardons online tracking system.
- In December 2023, Governor Shapiro signed “Clean Slate” legislation to streamline the process for pardoned Pennsylvanians to clear their criminal records.
- In July 2023, the Board of Pardons expanded its “expedited review” process for pardon applicants to make it more efficient, providing applicants with a clear and transparent process to follow. Started in 2025, applicants no longer need to request expedited review; Board staff automatically review all applications for eligibility.
- In the 2023-24 state budget, the Shapiro-Davis Administration invested $355,000 into a dedicated clemency unit within the Department of Corrections to address a backlog of applications for pardons and commutations.
Read more about Governor Shapiro’s 2026-27 Budget Proposal.
