PA Dept of Public Welfare

Options: Vision, Mission and/or Purpose of Organization

The Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare administers an array of supportive services and programs that assist millions of Pennsylvanians, from infants to the elderly, on a daily basis. The department’s programs help provide many of our most vulnerable citizens with the most basic necessities, including food, shelter, health care and other forms of vital assistance. The department’s overall mission is to:

•Promote, improve and help maintain the highest quality of life for Pennsylvania families;
•Support families’ efforts to break the cycle of dependence, find permanent employment and move from welfare to work;
•Provide access to the highest quality services that help keep Pennsylvania’s most vulnerable citizens safe and healthy; and
•Wisely and carefully manage taxpayers’ investment in programs and services.

Seven program offices oversee the department’s work in Pennsylvania’s 67 counties, with many of the services delivered through more than 100 County Assistance Offices. The department serves low-income Pennsylvanians through cash assistance programs such as Temporary Assistance to Needy Families, or TANF; employment and training programs; the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP; home heating assistance; and assistance programs for refugees and the homeless.

In a joint venture with the Pennsylvania Department of Education, the department serves children and families in early learning, subsidized child care and early intervention. The department also serves children and families through a nationally recognized child support enforcement program, adoption and foster care services, and works with counties on child abuse prevention and juvenile justice issues.

The department administers the joint state/federal Medicaid program (known in Pennsylvania as Medical Assistance), which purchases health care for 2.2 million Pennsylvania residents. The department also is responsible for enrolling Medical Assistance providers, processing provider claims, establishing rates and fees, contracting and monitoring of managed care organizations, and detecting and deterring provider and recipient fraud and abuse.

The departments works with individuals and families in the areas of cognitive disabilities, especially mental retardation and disorders falling in the autism spectrum, and counties that administer programs to address mental health and substance abuse issues in adults and children. The department strives toward independent living for those who are able and community living in the least restrictive environment for those in need of assistance in daily living. DPW also operates several mental health hospitals that provide high-quality, responsive care when institutional treatment is required.

In a joint endeavor with the Pennsylvania Department of Aging, the department works with counties on developing solutions to the challenges faced by older Pennsylvanians.