PA Navigate is Pennsylvania’s new statewide closed-loop resource and referral tool. Supported by the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services (DHS) and powered by Findhelp, PA Navigate gives providers the ability to connect their patients with needed social services and gives those social service agencies the ability to receive and update referrals.  

PA Navigate makes social data as sharable as clinical data is, breaking down silos between providers and across the care continuum and supporting efforts to improve outcomes for individuals and communities.

The Pennsylvania Rural Population Revitalization Commission and other state and local stakeholders recently hosted a public hearing on February 28 at the Railroaders Memorial Museum in Altoona, Blair County, to address local capacity issues. This event marked the Commission’s inaugural hearing, highlighting how limitations in local capacity can hinder the ability of rural communities to address challenges and implement solutions effectively.

Established by Act 21 of 2024, the purpose of the Commission is to create “reviews and recommendations aimed at attracting and retaining residents in rural Pennsylvania while addressing challenges facing rural communities due to population shifts and changing demographics.” This includes recommending legislation and regulatory change.

“This hearing marks a historic step for rural Pennsylvania as state officials, local officials, and private sector representatives come together to cooperatively confront the challenges facing our communities,” said Dr. Kyle C. Kopko, Chairman of the Commission. “All members of the Commission are committed to identifying and implementing meaningful solutions—through legislation, regulatory reform, and community best practices—to secure a vibrant and sustainable future for our rural communities. This hearing, and much of the Commission’s early work, will focus on strengthening local capacity. We must ensure that municipal governments, county governments, nonprofits, and community groups have the resources and expertise needed to plan for, and adapt to, changes in our population.”

“I was thrilled to host the Commission in Altoona, Blair County, for the most recent hearing and meeting and give members the chance to see my district firsthand,” said Senator Judy Ward, member of the Commission. “The testimony we received was thought-provoking and will be incredibly useful as we think about how to reverse rural Pennsylvania’s population decline. I look forward to future hearings with the Commission and am eager to see how we can continue to work together to help these communities grow and thrive.”

“The Commission is working diligently to determine the causes of population shifts in rural Pennsylvania and to develop policy recommendations to help reverse the trend,” said Senator Judy Schwank, member of the Commission. “There are so many terrific rural communities, like Altoona, that add character and value to the Commonwealth. In our first hearing, we had an informative dialogue with local leaders about the challenges they face in their communities.”

“The goal of this Commission is to better understand the complex challenges facing rural Pennsylvania and to make recommendations that will enhance quality of life, support economic prosperity, and improve access to essential services,” said Representative Paul Takac, member of the Commission. “Unfortunately, one of the most common roadblocks we face is limited local capacity. This hearing highlighted some of those specific challenges, as well as some practical ways we can better support local officials and ensure that our efforts and investments are getting to where they are most needed and can do the most good.”

“I’m happy to be part of this crucial discussion,” said Representative Michael Stender, member of the Commission. “It’s vital that we retain residents in rural Pennsylvania while creating a welcoming environment and addressing the unique challenges these communities face.”

Testifiers included:

• Sherene Hess, Indiana County Commissioner, President, County Commissioners Association of Pennsylvania (CCAP)
• Frank Mazza, Director of Government Relations, County Commissioners Association of Pennsylvania (CCAP)
• Holly Fishel, Policy and Research Director, Pennsylvania State Association of Township Supervisors (PSATS)
• Tami Halstead, Newport Borough Councilwoman, and 2nd Vice President of the Pennsylvania State Association of Boroughs (PSAB)
• Sarah Teater, Director of Capacity Building, Community Economic Development Association of Michigan (CEDAM)
• Shate’ja Curry, Community Development Fellowship Program Manager, Community Economic Development Association of Michigan (CEDAM)
• Charlotte Davis, Executive Director, Rural Maryland Council
• John Papalia, Senior Vice President, Warren County Chamber of Business and Industry
• Brandy Schimp, Mayor of Kane Borough
• Ryanne Jennings, President/CEO of Wayne County Community Foundation, Wayne Tomorrow!

Access the written testimony and video recording of the public hearing on the Commission’s webpage at https://www.rural.pa.gov/commission/public-hearing/growing-local-capacity-in-rural-pennsylvania.

Investing in childcare services creates jobs, allows caregivers to participate in the labor market, and provides opportunities for young families to remain in their rural communities — all of which contribute to a thriving regional economy. Research has shown that accessible, reliable childcare can help address local labor shortages and strengthen economic mobility for families.

Event: Rural Community Action Assembly: Childcare Demands and Workforce Needs
When: Thursday, March 27, from 10:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. ET
Where: Virtual

At this event, you will hear from experts and practitioners about strategies and best practices for supporting the local workforce through sustainable childcare services.

This event is for rural economic or workforce development organizations, policymakers and community leaders in rural regions, rural chambers of commerce, and current and potential childcare providers.

Participation is free, but registration is required. A video recording and event materials will be shared publicly after the session. Participants will have opportunities to engage with their peers, and all attendees will be encouraged to contribute to the conversation. Click here to register

For questions about this series, please contact Philip Jones at philip.jones@phil.frb.org.

This virtual meeting is a continuation of the Rural Community Action Assembly.

Update: On February 25, the White House issued an Executive Order to empower patients with clear, accurate, and actionable healthcare pricing information. Read the fact sheet for more information, which indicates the Departments of the Treasury, Labor, and Health and Human Services will:

• Ensure hospitals and insurers disclose actual prices, not estimates, and take action to make prices comparable across hospitals and insurers, including prescription drug prices
• Update their enforcement policies to ensure hospitals and insurers are in compliance with requirements to make prices transparent

Existing CMS guidance: Hospital Price Transparency regulations require each hospital operating in the U.S. to provide 1) a comprehensive machine-readable file with the standard charges for all items and services the hospital provides and 2) a display of shoppable services in a consumer-friendly format.

Additional resources available:

• Hospital Price Transparency Tools: CMS offers a suite of tools to aid hospitals in implementing hospital price transparency. These tools are designed to help facilitate compliance with regulations and enhance the accessibility of pricing information. The Online Validator ensures machine-readable files meet CMS template layouts and data specifications, enabling hospitals to identify and fix errors before publication. The HPT TXT Generator helps hospitals create the required cms-hpt.txt file, which contains information about the hospital and a direct link to the machine-readable file.
• Data Dictionary GitHub Repository: Here hospitals can access the CMS templates and data dictionary with technical instructions for encoding required standard charge information and get technical support.
• For any questions related to hospital price transparency, email PriceTransparencyHospitalCharges@cms.hhs.gov.

Compliance: CMS is planning a more systematic monitoring and enforcement approach, per the Executive Order. Consistent with standing CMS policies, non-compliance will be addressed with swift enforcement. See a list of enforcement actions to date and see a list, updated quarterly, of enforcement activities and their outcomes undertaken by CMS since the January 1, 2021, effective date.

CMS will host a series of public engagement events this spring as part of the Medicare Drug Price Negotiation Program. The virtual public engagement events will provide an opportunity for patients, beneficiaries, caregivers, consumer and patient organizations, and other interested parties, such as clinicians and researchers, to share input relevant to the drugs selected for the second cycle of negotiations.

CMS is interested in input relevant to the selected drugs, the condition(s) that the selected drug may be used to treat, and other medications that may be used to manage those conditions. This includes information related to the clinical benefits of the selected drugs compared to therapeutic alternatives, how the selected drugs address unmet need, and how the selected drugs impact specific populations.

CMS will use the information shared during the roundtable events to better understand patients’ experiences with the conditions and diseases treated by the selected drugs and patients’ experiences with the selected drugs themselves. CMS will use the information shared during the town hall meeting to better understand clinicians’ experiences prescribing and/or managing treatment with the selected drugs or therapeutic alternatives and clinicians’ considerations that drive treatment choice between the selected drugs and therapeutic alternatives. The information shared during both the town hall meeting and the roundtable events will also inform CMS’ identification of therapeutic alternatives, key outcomes, and adjustment of the starting point to develop the initial offer in negotiating with manufacturers of selected drugs. CMS will release redacted transcripts for the town hall meeting and each of the roundtable events, omitting participant names and other identifying information after all the events have ended.

Dates: The public engagement events will be held April 16 – April 30, 2025. Participant registration will be open until March 12, 2025.

Attendance: Anyone from the public may attend the town hall meeting livestream as a listener. Registration is not required, and the link to the livestream will be available here on April 30, 2025. Accommodation for people with disabilities and language assistance (e.g., interpretation) may be available.

Public Input Opportunities: There are two ways the public can share feedback and input with CMS:

• Public Engagement Events:
  • CMS will host one livestreamed town hall meeting for all selected drugs, focused on the clinical considerations related to the selected drugs. CMS encourages practicing clinicians and researchers, as well as other interested parties, to register to speak.
  • CMS will host 15 private (i.e., not livestreamed or open to press or general public) patient-focused roundtable events, one for each selected drug, which will be open to patients, patient advocacy organizations, and caregivers selected to speak at the events, and will allow for discussion among speakers.

Those who wish to make a public statement in the town hall meeting or to participate in a private roundtable event should register for the opportunity to speak at the public engagement events. Additional information to register for the events can be found here. For more information about the public engagement events, please see the Frequently Asked Questions document linked here.

If you are selected to speak at the event for which you registered, you will have 4 days after receiving the confirmation email to confirm your availability to participate at the selected event date and time, and any language interpretation services you need.

• Submitted Statement: CMS encourages the public to submit written input, if interested, in response to the CMS request for information about selected drugs and evidence about alternative treatments. Information can be submitted here by 11:59 PM PT March 1, 2025.

The public engagement events are subject to change, including postponement and/or cancellation.

Additional information on the public engagement events can be found here. Additional information about the Medicare Drug Price Negotiation Program can be found here.