As of October 21st, the 2025-26 legislative session is effectively over.
While additional session days remain in November, the General Assembly convenes post-election for caucus leadership elections and the opportunity for members who are leaving service to make farewell speeches before their respective Chambers.
All legislation which did not reach the Governor’s desk may be reintroduced at the beginning of each two-year legislative session. The 2027-28 session begins January 1, 2027.
SB 116 signed into law:
PACAH is pleased to announce that SB116 allowing high school students to earn up to 2 credits towards graduation for working in a nursing facility passed the House unanimously and has been signed into law as Act 90 of 2026.
SB 116 was introduced by Senator David Argall as part of a package aimed at improving workforce development for long term care. SB 116 should encourage more students to explore a variety of careers in direct care.
Qualifying facilities include nursing homes, personal care homes, and assisted living communities providing round-the-clock care for seniors
Intended to build an early healthcare career pipeline, SB 116 advanced through unanimous votes: the Senate passed it 47-0 on February 3, 2026, the House Education Committee reported it favorably 26-0 on October 6, 2026, and it achieved final House passage on October 21, 2026.
SB 114 strengthening nurse aide training for long-term care facilities to be reintroduced in 2027:
PACAH’s top priority has been an effort to streamline the nurses aid training program in Pennsylvania to grow this critical workforce amid dire staffing shortages.
PACAH’s Goals for improving nurse aid training though this legislation include:
• Ensure that Nurse Aides, who have received the required training, can serve as Nurse Aides while seeking certification testing, allowing more staff at LTC facilities to provide care.
• Provide a reasonable and structured time frame (12 months) for certification testing after training has been completed.
• Implement a Train-the-Trainer Model, enabling efficient teaching with rapid dissemination of the appropriate curriculum, which should involve real-time experience on a LTC resident unit.
• Allow facilities to include Nurse Aides and trainees in their staff-to-resident ratios after required training and under mentor supervision and peer-to peer supervision
The Senate passed the bill 34-15 in September of 2025, but the the final bill did not pass the House of Representatives. PACAH is working with Senate sponsors towards reintroduction of SB114 in a form once again aimed directly at streamlining nurse aid training. We expect legislation to be ready for introduction in early 2027.
SB 115
SB 115 which would have allowed caregiver applicants to complete a skills competency exam in lieu of obtaining a GED did not pass the House and may be reintroduced in 2027.
