Martinsburg, PA – In an ongoing effort to promote enhancements to long-term care across Pennsylvania, Acting Secretary of Health Dr. Debra Bogen visited The Village at Morrisons Cove, a skilled nursing facility in Martinsburg, Blair County, to highlight the recent investments from the Health Department's Long-Term Care Transformation Office (LTCTO) to promote workforce development and upgrade facilities.
"Over the past year, I have traveled throughout the Commonwealth, listening to and learning from long-term care staff about the positive impact funding from the Long-Term Care Transformation Office has made," said Acting Secretary of Health Dr. Debra Bogen. "The Shapiro Administration understands and supports the work being done by the Long-Term Care Transformation Office and has proposed $10 million in funding for the office in its 2024-2025 fiscal year budget to ensure residents of these facilities get the best care possible."
The Village at Morrisons Cove is investing the funding to upgrade visitation spaces, identifying managers for training in key business-enhancing areas, improving emergency preparedness, and disease infection prevention.
The Village at Morrisons Cove Long-Term Care Administrator Bonnie Robison highlighted the facility's various investments with the $193,400 in funding it received from the LTCTO. The funding was made possible through the Quality Investment Pilot announced by the Department of Health (DOH) to supplement infrastructure improvements at long-term care facilities across the Commonwealth.
Innovations and upgrades such as these improve the quality of life for older Pennsylvanians.
"Direct care workers are not only amazing people, but they are also the keystone of Pennsylvania's long-term services and supports, helping older adults live as fully and independently as possible. Communities must support these workers across the spectrum of direct care services to develop a career path that sustains them and encourages them to grow professionally," said Secretary of Aging Jason Kavulich. "Pennsylvania's 10-year plan for older adults, Aging Our Way, PA, will refresh the blueprint developed by our Long-Term Care Council to improve wages, benefits and training and establish a career ladder for care workers so they can continue to support others."
In early 2023, the Health Department consolidated its older Pennsylvania care efforts into the LTCTO to help address the challenges facing the long-term care industry.
The Office provides guidance and assistance to care communities, including assisted living, intermediate care, skilled nursing, personal care homes, and state veterans homes. It works with multiple state agencies and stakeholder organizations to understand industry challenges and implement positive changes.
The Office is focused on resiliency in the long-term care workforce, infection prevention and control, emergency preparedness, and sustainable outbreak response operations to help protect residents.
In a continuing effort to support long-term care throughout Pennsylvania, and to provide sustainable funding for the DOH's Long-Term Care Transformation Office, Governor Josh Shapiro proposed investing $10 million to continue the office's work in 2024-2025.
The Long-Term Care Transformation Office's efforts to invest in the future of the Commonwealth's long-term care workforce coincides with ongoing workforce development efforts by the Shapiro Administration, including:
- $400 million investment in creating the Commonwealth Workforce Transformation Program
- $2.6 million in awards for apprenticeship and pre-apprenticeship opportunities
- $23.5 million investment in workforce training and vo-tech programs in 2023-2024 state budget
$3.5 million in funding for the School-to-Work program in 2023-2024 state budget
Media Contact: Jack Eilber, agingcomms@pa.gov