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Mauree Gingrich
State Representative
101
st
Legislative District
STATE REPRESENTATIVE MAUREE GINGRICH’S OFFICES ARE HERE TO SERVE YOU….
District Office: 445 W. Penn Avenue, Cleona Square, Cleona, PA 17042 (717) 270-1905 Harrisburg Office: 430 Irvis Office Building, PO Box 202101, Harrisburg, PA 17120-2101(717) 783-1815 Office Hours: 9 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
Website: RepGingrich.com E-mail: mgingric@pahousegop.com
Dear Neighbor,
RepGingrich.com
Dear Friends and Neighbors,
FALL 2010
While summer has been a won-derful time to enjoy family time andsome record-breaking very hotweather, the fall is approachingand with it we all have additionalchallenges. The good news isthat the state budget was passedon time for the first time in the pasteight years! The reality, however,is that it is far from perfect. Onlydays after the budget was signedby the governor, we learned thatthe additional federal stimulusfunding that was factored into thebudget calculations was not goingto be forthcoming. A plan for thetolling of I-80 was denied by thefederal government, leaving uswith a significant transportationdeficit. The sour icing on the cakeis the projected pension spike thatthreatens to have a lasting nega-tive impact on us at both the stateand local level.These significant shortfalls mustbe addressed early this fall so wecan create a realistic and sustain-able budget in 2011. I remaincommitted to putting controls ongovernment spending, not just talk-ing about it. It is our responsibilityto assess all government programsand services, determine their valueand outcomes and ultimately im-prove efficiencies or eliminate anti-quated or unnecessary elements. Iam looking forward to working withyou to accomplish what we all want-- a state government that is effec-tive and makes us proud.
House Passes Billto Ensure Patient Safetyin Operating Rooms
It is always satisfying to see a piece of legislation you sponsored signedinto law, but when your legislation saves lives, its passage takes on an evendeeper meaning.I sponsored legislation that is designed to improve patient safety and cutdown on mistakes in hospital operating rooms. My legislation will require hos-pitals and health care facilities to have a circulating nurse in the operating roomduring procedures using general anesthesia or deep sedation.A circulating nurse is a highly trained registered nurse who serves as headnurse in the operating room. He or she is responsible for patient safety throughoversight and ensuring that all operating room equipment is present, sterile andin proper working order. In addition, circulating nurses are trained to recognizesigns of distress in patients under sedation and to act accordingly.As a former health care professional and current member of the HouseHealth and Human Services Committee and the Aging and Older Adult Ser-vices Committee, I introduced this legislation to ensure that this vital patientsafety measure is implemented, and to provide patients with added assurancethat they are receiving the best quality care. Countless lives have been savedthanks to circulating nurses.Pennsylvania will join 38 other states that require a circulating nurse in theoperating room when sedation is necessary. Many Pennsylvania hospitalsalready take this precaution. However, until now, it was not required.
Rep. Gingrich at Republican Policy Committee hearing in August on theshortcomings of Pennsylvania’s Megan’s Law website.
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Pension Reforms Fall Short
The House-approved plan toreform the state’s ailing pensionsystems is a good start. I supportedseveral amendments that would pro-vide for real reform. The plan revertsback to the pension formula that wasin place in 2000 including increasedvesting periods, increased retirementages, and caps on increases to savetaxpayers money.I supported amendments by myRepublican colleagues to HouseBill 2497 that would have further softened the financial blow that iscoming in 2012 when the state’scontribution to the plans is scheduledto rise sharply, but a vote on theseamendments was blocked.While we approved major reformsto the state pension systems, I want-ed those reforms to go much further.Cost-saving amendments that werenot considered would:
Establish a statewide definedcontribution plan for future state andlocal public employees, includingpublic school teachers.
Convert PSERS to a definedcontribution/defined benefit plan for future employees.
Allow federal stimulus moneynot targeted to a specific program tocover PSERS’ unfunded liability;
Minimum contribution rates toeliminate future spikes in contributionrates.
Increase PSERS employer con-tribution rate to allow school districtsto pay off shortfalls before the pro- jected rate spike.
Removal of the cap on schooldistrict reserve balances for futurepension contributions, permittingschool districts to contribute moreand taxpayers to save in the future.Pennsylvania is currently facing amulti-billion dollar unfunded liabilityin its pension systems. The changescontained in HB 2497 will not affectretirement benefits for existing SERSor PSERS members. Instead, theywill apply to new hires. The plan willhelp address future expenses andwill enable the state and school dis-tricts to better manage their annualpension obligations.Both retirement systems arefunded by employee and employer contributions and investment earn-ings. Lagging employer contributionsand a down economy are largelyresponsible for the pension crisis thatwill require an estimated 30 percentincrease in employer contributions in2012, if not addressed by legislativeaction.To help avert a crisis, it was nec-essary to restructure the plan for future employees by changing con-tribution rates, extending the time ittakes for a new employee to becomevested, increasing the retirement ageand eliminating the lump sum payoutoption.The pension system will look dif-ferent for future employees. Changeswere necessary to smooth out whatwould have been a certain fiscal di-saster. It is unfortunate we were notpermitted to do more.The pension bill passed by a widemargin in the House and now restswith the Senate where I am hopefulit will be further amended to includenecessary reforms.
Table Games Revenue Should SupportProperty Tax Relief
Legislation to allow slot machine gambling in Commonwealth passed in 2004 on the promise that it was toprovide substantial property tax relief to Pennsylvania citizens. Six years later, the relief we have seen falls far short of substantial.Now we have table games and the bill that was passed to allow this expansion of gambling in Pennsylvaniaprovided no promise of tax relief. In fact, I did not vote for table games because I believe it offers Pennsylvaniataxpayers no relief of any kind.Senate Bill 711 was rushed through the General Assembly and a conference committee and did not containsufficient reforms to correct problems already plaguing the gaming industry in Pennsylvania. Further, I believethat 100 percent of state proceeds from table games should be directed toward property tax relief. I supportedan amendment that would have done just that.I am disappointed that the legislation still allows for a major conflict of interest in that the Pennsylvania Gaming ControlBoard can conduct its own background checks and those of vendors and licensees through its Bureau of Investigationand Enforcement. Many of my Republican colleagues and Ibelieve that the state police or the Office of Attorney General – both law enforcement agencies – should conduct the back-ground investigations and have greater oversight regardinglaw enforcement.Although we have been able to put mechanisms in place toincrease transparency and accountability in the state’s gamingindustry, our work in this regard is far from over.
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Gingrich Aims to Reduce Infections in Hospitals
Bill would mandate certification for sterile processing technicians
Nowhere is it more critical tomaintain a clean, sterile environ-ment than in hospitals. Yet countlesspeople die each year, not from theillness or affliction that brought theminto the hospital, but from the infec-tion that they may have contractedwhile a patient.According to a study publishedin the Archives of Internal Medicine,pneumonia and sepsis, a bloodinfection caused by bacteria, arecommon threats to patients in hos-pitals all across the United States. Infact, the study found that these twoinfections alone claimed the livesof 48,000 patients who contractedthe infections while hospitalized in2006.The level of concern about hospi-tal-based infections is rising sharply,particularly as infections grow moredrug resistant. The costs for treat-ment, increasing mortality rates andrising liability are putting greater emphasis on prevention.One leading cause of hospital-based infection is the use of medicaltools that have not been properlysterilized. Sterile processing techni-cians are responsible for sterilizingall durable medical equipment.These are reusable medical devicesthat are routinely used in life-savingmedical procedures and daily patientcare.In Pennsylvania, those responsiblefor ensuring that all surgical equip-ment is thoroughly processed andsterilized are often entry-level employ-ees with little education or training.Physicians must be able to performsurgery without fear that patient safetywill be jeopardized as a result of theinstruments used.Currently, Pennsylvania law doesnot require sterile processing tech-nicians to be certified or undergocontinuing education in sterile pro-cessing techniques. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention haspublished guidelines for sterilizationand disinfection of healthcare facili-ties, but the absence of specific lawsleaves hospitals to establish their ownprocedures and results vary. I ampreparing legislation that will requiresterile processing technicians to betrained and state certified.As we design the certificationplan, I am seeking input from thePennsylvania Department of Health,which would oversee and regulatethe certification process, as wellas the International Association of Healthcare Central Service Materi-als Management, the Association of Operating Nurses and The AmericanAssociation of Advancement of Medical Instrumentation.Just as infections have grownresistant to antibiotics and other treatments, today’s medical equip-ment, which includes robotics, hasalso made sterilization more chal-lenging. This bill will require continu-ing education in order to maintaincertification.State certification would man-date that technicians be trained inbasic microbiology to understandinfection control and preventionof cross-contamination. Trainingwould include medical terminologyto better understand the practicesand procedures used in the oper-ating room and the needs of thedoctors and staff there.New Jersey is the only statethat requires certification of sterileprocessing technicians. However,several states are in the process of implementing state-mandated cer-tification based on the New Jerseymodel.With the cost of infections sohigh, prevention is key. Certificationwill lead to a higher level of compe-tency and patient care, and continu-ing education will ensure that thosehigh standards are maintained.
Gingrich appears with nursing students following a speaking engagement on HACC’s Lebanon Campus. Gingrich will be profiled in an upcoming feature story in the college’s fall newsletter.
New WebsiteAvailable forElectric Consumers
Pennsylvania consumers who are shopping for acompetitive electric generation supplier know that thePennsylvania Public Utility Commission (PUC) is offeringa one-stop shop website for residential, commercial andindustrial customers.The website includes information about electric shop-ping, what it is, how to shop and which suppliers areavailable, as well as the PUC’s list of competing suppliersand the Office of Consumer Advocate’s Shopping Guidepricing information. A ZIP-code search feature is alsoavailable so consumers can see all suppliers and offersserving a given area.For a link to the website and further information aboutelectric rate information, visit my website at
RepGingrich.com.
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