DCED Official Helps to Break Ground for Hospital Expansion Project in So...(Investing approximately $260 million in ...),Health

Infrastructure; and

-- Passing the Energy Independence Strategy and the Jonas Salk Legacy Fund.

"A lot of deserving, job-creating, life-enhancing projects will go elsewhere or never get started if we don't fund these programs," Kaplan said. "We need to replenish these resources to ensure Pennsylvania's short- and long-term economic stability."

Additionally, the Governor's health care proposal, which has passed the House as Pennsylvania Access to Basic Care, would make affordable basic health insurance available through the private insurance market to eligible small businesses that don't offer health insurance to their employees. PA ABC would provide $42 million in care grants to help small businesses that already provide health care for their employees to help pay up to 25 percent of the cost of health coverage.

"Even if you have health insurance, you're affected by those 1,400 Butler County residents waiting to get it," Kaplan said. "About 6.5 percent of insurance premiums cover the cost of health care for the uninsured, meaning every Pennsylvanian pays the price of having an inadequate health care system."

To learn more about site preparation funding available through DCED, visit http://www.newpa.com or call 1-866-466-3972. For additional information on Governor Rendell's proposed budget or PA ABC, visit http://www.pa.gov.

CONTACT: Janel Miller

(717) 783-1132