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WILKES-BARRE — The Pennsylvania Department of Aging this week provided information on the Meals on Wheels programs during a meeting of the House Aging and Older Adult Services Committee.
“As the state unit on aging, PDA is formally charged with administering nutrition services authorized in Title III, Section C of the Older Americans Act,” said Christine Miccio, bureau director of Aging Services. “Nutrition services aim to do three things among the aging population — reduce hunger and food insecurity, promote socialization and promote health and well-being.”
Congregate and home-delivered meals represent a large and important segment of the nutrition services provided by the aging services network, as one of the few resources available in combating senior hunger in Pennsylvania, Miccio said.
With more than 3.9 million Baby Boomers projected to become eligible for aging services in Pennsylvania by 2020, the department anticipates the demand for congregate and home-delivered meal services to rise concurrently.
“For more than four decades, Meals on Wheels programs in communities large and small, urban and rural, have provided older adults in the greatest social and economic need with a nutritious meal, friendly visit, and in many cases a wellness check,” Miccio said.
In March 1972, President Richard Nixon signed a measure into law that amended the Older Americans Act and established a national nutrition program for seniors 60 years and older. Since 2002, the annual March for Meals observance has grown into a full-scale awareness, fundraising and volunteer recruitment campaign involving and supporting the network of local Meals on Wheels programs.
The PDA says President Donald Trump’s blueprint budget eliminates both the Community Services Block Grant and Community Development Block Grant, which provide funding to some local Meals on Wheels programs.
Though details on Meals on Wheels primary funding source — the Older Americans Act — have not yet been provided, the stated 17.9 percent cut to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services would likely have a negative impact on senior nutrition programs.
In fiscal year 2015-16, the Pennsylvania Department of Aging and its network of Area Agencies on Aging provided more than 5.7 million home-delivered meals.
More state park beaches
to be smoke-free
Visitors to state parks this upcoming summer season will find more swimming beaches designated as “smoke free” at the 121 state parks across the state, Department of Conservation and Natural Resources Secretary Cindy Adams Dunn announced this week.
Responding to visitor requests and support, DCNR is implementing smoking controls at 16 new swimming beaches with their traditional Memorial Day opening on May 29. The pilot “smoke free” program has expanded this year to include 39 of 54 swimming beaches across Pennsylvania.
• Smoking constraints at designated parks eliminate smoking on beaches and swimming areas.
• For visitors who smoke and still want to use these beaches, designated areas adjacent to the beach are provided.
• The restriction includes cigarettes, pipes, cigars and the increasingly popular e-cigarettes.
Staff at newly affected parks have been preparing for the change by purchasing and installing butt disposal units; installing new signage; establishing designated smoking areas with seating; and informing park user and support groups.
New state park smoke-free beaches will be established this season at: Bald Eagle, Centre County; Beltzville, Carbon County; Chapman, Warren County; Canoe Creek, Blair County; Greenwood Furnace, Huntingdon County; Hickory Run, Luzerne County; Little Pine, Lycoming County; Moraine (Lakeview Beach), Butler County; Ole Bull, Potter County; Poe Valley, Centre County; Prince Gallitzin (Muskrat Beach), Cambria County; Pymatuning, (Jamestown Campground and Linesville beaches), Crawford County; Promised Land (Main Beach), Pike County; Tobyhanna, Monroe County; and Tuscarora, Schuylkill County.
“This expansion is directly in line with the state parks’ primary mission — provide opportunities for enjoying healthful outdoor recreation and serve as outdoor classrooms for environmental education,” Dunn said. “It was an ongoing bid to gauge the pulse of the public that led our Bureau of State Parks to expand its ‘Smoke-Free Beach’ locations.”
Dunn said from the outset of this program in May 2013 beach restrictions consistently have been hailed by visitors for significantly improving air quality and reducing cigarette-butt litter.
“Success of our initial goals, as well as feedback from park visitors across the state, encouraged us to again expand the ‘Smoke-Free Beach’ areas this season,” she said.
In 2016, 12 state parks, including Ricketts Glen in Luzerne County, initiated new smoke-free beaches.
Surveys, feedback to park managerial staff, and reservation information all played a key role in the department’s decision to continue expanding smoking restrictions.
Visit www.dcnr.pa.gov for more information on smoking and other state park regulations. For reservation information, go to www.visitPAparks.com.
Wolf opposes eliminating
home heating program
Gov. Tom Wolf this week expressed his strong opposition to President Donald Trump’s budget proposal and the elimination of funding for the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program.
The president’s proposed budget would eliminate critical funding for services to hundreds of thousands of vulnerable citizens, Wolf said.
“The proposal to eliminate the LIHEAP program is cruel and will put many Pennsylvanians at risk,” Wolf said. “I vehemently oppose a federal budget cut to a program that helps keep our most vulnerable Pennsylvanians warm in the harsh winter months.”
• LIHEAP provides assistance for home heating bills to keep approximately 345,000 citizens including the elderly, children, and individuals living with a disability warm and safe during the winter months.
• The program is available to both renters and homeowners.
• The support comes in the form of a grant, so the individual does not have to repay assistance, and goes directly to their utility company or home heating fuel provider.
The Department of Human Services received approximately $185.5 million in federal funding for the 2016-17 LIHEAP season.
“The department’s hope is that the federal proposal is solely an ill-advised negotiating tactic, not a serious proposal,” said DHS Secretary Ted Dallas.
During the 2015-16 LIHEAP season, 345,246 households received cash benefits and 89,735 households received crisis benefits statewide totaling $159.5 million in assistance. These households each received an average of $462.
