Committee chair Madden said the House Aging and Older Adult Services Committee on Feb. 1 voted unanimously to report House Bill 1528, known as the Grama Family Assistance Program, which would authorize one-time grants to local Area Agencies on Aging to support grandparents who are primary caregivers while a child’s parent is enrolled in opioid use disorder treatment.

The bill’s backers say it will reimburse eligible out-of-pocket costs related to the care of a grandchild, such as diapers, formula and copayments, and would be funded primarily from the Commonwealth’s opioid settlement funds.

House Bill 1528, as explained by committee staff, would let local Area Agencies on Aging assist grandparents with applications and forward completed applications to the Department of Aging for review and approval. Staff clarified that eligible expenses exclude any costs already reimbursed by another payer, including payments from the child’s parent or any federal, state or county agency. The bill’s sponsors said an amendment to refine administrative details will be filed on the House floor and that the Department of Aging and the departments administering opioid settlement distributions are working with the sponsors on agreed language.

Chair Madden described the measure as personal and bipartisan. “They need help,” she said, recounting stories she heard as a freshman lawmaker attending informational hearings on grandparents raising grandchildren. Representative Brown, a co-sponsor, told the committee she estimates roughly 83,000 grandparents in Pennsylvania are raising grandchildren, amounting to about 260,000 children, and said the stipend the bill creates would give seniors financial relief.

Committee members asked several clarifying questions. A member asked whether the program would include income limits; staff replied there are none in the bill as drafted. Another member asked how the program would determine who qualifies as a grandparent; staff and sponsors said the Area Agencies on Aging would be “the boots on the ground” to verify that applicants are actual grandparents, and the legislation does not extend eligibility to other kin such as uncles or informal caregivers. One representative urged the committee to consider psychological screening of guardians after describing cases of unsuitable caregivers; sponsors said those concerns would be taken under consideration but no screening requirement is in the bill.

On funding, staff said the bill is intended to use pots of the opioid settlement fund that are available to the Department of Aging but that a precise cost projection was “not specified” and will depend on appropriations and the distribution of settlement dollars among eligible uses.

After discussion, the committee took a roll call and reported the bill out of committee by unanimous vote.

Next steps: sponsors said they will file a floor amendment to clarify implementation details and continue working with the Department of Aging and settlement administrators on the program’s administration.