HARRISBURG – Sen. Camera Bartolotta (R-46) today supported Senate passage of three bills to stop waste, fraud, and abuse in Pennsylvania’s Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program (SNAP) and Medical Assistance program (Medicaid).
The measures make the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services (DHS) accountable for tracking down the misuse of taxpayer dollars intended for public assistance programs.
“The cases of people who are no longer living still receiving state benefits are unacceptable – taxpayers deserve better. These three bills will help prevent fraud like this from occurring,” Bartolotta said.
Senate Bill 155 would prevent dead people from receiving benefits by requiring DHS to check death certificates at the Bureau of Vital Statistics against recipients of public assistance. A state audit previously found 2,324 deceased public assistance recipients received benefits totaling $700,000 in a 12-month period.
Senate Bill 156 requires DHS to compare wage records held by employers and the Pennsylvania Department of Revenue with public assistance recipients quarterly to prevent fraud. From 2019-23, the Pennsylvania Office of State Inspector General filed more than 2,900 criminal complaints of welfare fraud, with more than $15 million owed in restitution.
Senate Bill 157 would update the Public Assistance Integrity Act to require the Department of Human Services to issue a yearly report on their efforts to ensure lottery winners are not receiving cash benefits. The Public Assistance Integrity Act, a bipartisan initiative signed into law in 2018, closed a loophole that did not require lottery winnings to be considered as income when determining eligibility for benefits.
The bills will be sent to the Pennsylvania House of Representatives for consideration.
CONTACT: Katrina Hanna, 717-787-1463