Published in the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review

July 21, 2014

Pennsylvania's new state budget will eliminate a waiting list for home-based services that assist adults with disabilities, the Department of Public Welfare announced Monday.

This year's spending plan, which Gov. Tom Corbett signed July 10, includes $7.2 million for adults previously on the waiting list for the program, called Act 150, according to a news release.

The release did not indicate how many are on the waiting list.

The program provides help for those who require assistance with daily tasks because of a physical disability that is expected to last more than a year and people who are clinically eligible to be put in a long-term facility but do not qualify financially for long-term care through Medical Assistance.

Those enrolled in the program pay service fees based on a sliding scale. Last year, Act 150 served about 2,100 people.

(Melissa Daniels, "Pa. eliminates wait list for home-based disability services," Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, 7/21/14)