(The Center Square) – The state of Pennsylvania’s cost for health and human services department has increased from $24.1 billion to $59.1 billion from 2006 to 2023.
That is a 63% increase over the 17 years after adjusting for inflation.
Health and human services have a significant role in the state’s budget, accounting for approximately 65% of the total general fund expenditures in 2023 according to a recent budget document released by the state of Pennsylvania.
The state attributed the increase in costs to many variables.
Pennsylvania expanded Medicaid in 2015 and added 900,000 more people to coverage. In 2022, the state extended Medicaid postpartum coverage from 60 days after the end of a pregnancy to one year.
The federal government allowed the state to continue Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program for people even if they were no longer eligible throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. That policy ended in March 2023.
The pandemic triggered an increase in state residents seeking behavioral health care and the state provided funding to counties to support the increased demand.
The state has more and more people who are eligible for Medicaid-funded long-term care services.
Health and human services are one of the many services offered by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania for its 13 million citizens. Pennsylvania is one of four Commonwealths in the United States.
These essential services are divided into seven categories consisting of direct and supportive services, protection of persons and property, health and human services, public education, economic development, transportation, recreation, and cultural enrichment.
One of the most significant costs for health and human services has come from the number of people receiving mental health services, which increased from 418,749 in 2006 to 910,013 in 2023.
Another high cost consists of the average monthly number of people participating in Medicaid, which has increased from 1.8 million to 3.7 million over the same 17-year period.
On Apr. 1, 2023, Pennsylvania was authorized to terminate individuals who do not qualify for Medicaid services from the program for the first time since the pandemic-era requirement that began three years prior, according to a news release.
The process for the state of Pennsylvania began in May 2023.
Medicaid and CHIP enrollment declined by 301,910 from April to October of 2023, according to KFF, the independent source for health policy research, polling, and news.
