Gov. Wolf Leads Bi-Partisan Effort to Support Health Care Employees

Governor Tom Wolf today issued the following statement on the bipartisan efforts to provide emergency support to health care employees in the commonwealth.

"Three weeks ago, my administration convened a working group including all four caucuses to act to relieve hospitals overwhelmed beyond capacity by the Omicron variant and health care workers overburdened by staffing shortages after years of battling the pandemic on the front lines. This working group was one part of the multi-layered approach my administration is taking to address the current crisis in Pennsylvania, including deploying state-led strike teams to hospitals and launching regional decompression sites for hospitals and long-term care facilities.

"I am pleased that legislative Democrats and Republicans came together in a bipartisan effort to address this issue through House Bill 253. This legislation is vitally important to supporting our most critical assets, our health care employees. They deserve this necessary relief and our support at this time. Today, I am pleased that the Senate passed the legislation unanimously and I encourage the House to swiftly concur in these amendments and send the bill to my desk. I will be proud to sign this legislation into law."