The Pennsylvania State Capitol in Harrisburg.

AG Shapiro shares tips on solicitations/donations to help crisis in Ukraine

WILKES-BARRE — Attorney General Josh Shapiro this week encouraged Pennsylvanians to follow three simple steps when donating money or goods to assist the people of Ukraine.

“As Pennsylvanians rally to support the victims of war in Ukraine, you can follow three simple steps to make sure your generosity goes to people in need, not to the scammers,” Shapiro said. “Too often during humanitarian emergencies, scammers try to tug at the heartstrings of people who want to help, only to line their own pockets.”

The Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General has released the following tips for consumers who are looking to donate:

Step 1 — Ask Questions:

Where will your donation go specifically? Charities should always be able to give you specific information on what your donation will fund.

Who is soliciting your donation? Bad actors will try to take advantage of you without answering the name of the group they are calling on behalf of.

Ask for the EIN (Employee Identification Number) for U.S. based charities. Charitable organizations should have this number and provide it to you. The EIN helps simplify IRS searches for charity information.

Step 2 — Double Check:

Check with the IRS or the Pennsylvania Department of State registries to see if this organization is registered and if donations are tax deductible. In Pennsylvania, all non-religious non-profit organizations must register with the Department of State.

While an organization may be registered, it does not mean it is effective. Check nonprofit sites like Give.org, CharityWatch.org, Charitynavigator.org or similar trusted sites that regularly do research on charities.

Be wary of new charities: organizations that did not exist before and now only exist because of a crisis may not be legitimate.

Step 3 — Be Careful How You Pay:

Never donate in cash or on your debit card. Credit cards are best.

Avoid using cryptocurrency, such as BitCoin.

Never give money on impulse or through a mystery solicitation.

Scammers try to create urgency and pressure when soliciting money – stay calm and do not allow yourself to be pressured by urgent appeals.

If you believe you have been a victim to a scam, contact your local police to file a report and to file a complaint with the Office of Attorney General’s Bureau of Consumer Protection at: 800-441-2555.

Tips offered to protect older adults from Medicare scams

With private insurers increasingly promoting their Medicare coverage plans through marketing campaigns that feature celebrities or offer gifts, the Pennsylvania Department of Aging has sent a letter to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), supporting CMS’ efforts to address the issue of marketing misrepresentation, and offering suggestions to protect consumers from advertising messages that may be confusing or misleading.

In the letter, Secretary Robert Torres outlined the consequences that older adults could face if they switch from a Medigap plan to a Medicare Advantage plan due to these marketing campaigns, including loss of coverage and access to their doctors, new co-pays, and the inability to return to the Medigap plan. The letter cited an example in which an older adult left their Medigap plan for a Medicare Advantage plan for the incentive of a free fruit basket that they did not qualify to receive.

Secretary Torres further urges CMS to act on the following proposed measures:

• Require clearer disclaimers with standard language developed by CMS that indicate the products offered do not represent the full selection of choices available to consumers.

• Make the beneficiary aware of the disclaimer, the availability of other suitable options, and the ramifications of switching plans.

• Prohibit the use of the word “Medicare” in the phone number, company, or website name, and the use of Medicare-like graphics in marketing materials.

• Require a statement that the advertised plans may not be the best choice for everyone and may not be available in every area.

• Include the 1-800-MEDICARE toll-free helpline and numbers for State Health Insurance and Assistance Programs (SHIPs).

AG, Consumer Advocate call on state to extend deadline for LIHEAP program

Attorney General Josh Shapiro and Acting Consumer Advocate Patrick Cicero this week urged Pennsylvanians struggling to pay their utility bills to use available programs that can provide relief.

They also called on the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services to use unspent funds for an extension of the annual LIHEAP (Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program) Crisis Season.

“Energy prices are up this year and will likely keep rising,” Shapiro said. “I want Pennsylvanians to know that there is help available for everyone, and that we are going to do all we can to make sure that these resources remain available to Pennsylvanians over the spring and summer.”

“I urge DHS to keep the LIHEAP program open for applications until Aug. 31,” added Cicero. “Pennsylvania has hundreds of millions of dollars of LIHEAP funding left, and no eligible Pennsylvanian in need should have their utilities shut off. There is help available.”

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the price of electricity in Pennsylvania is up approximately 9 percent, and the price of natural gas is up 20 percent. Pennsylvania also saw record high funding and usage for it’s LIHEAP program.

Currently, the LIHEAP program is scheduled to close for this year on May 6. AG Shapiro and Acting Consumer Advocate Cicero have requested that the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services use remaining funds to keep the program open to new applications until Aug. 31.

Casey, Toomey disagree on bill to reform U.S. Postal Service

U.S. Sen. Bob Casey, D-Scranton, this week said the Postal Service Reform Act is a significant step toward modernizing one of the federal government’s most important functions.

“As I voted in favor of this bill, I thought about the Pennsylvanians I continue to hear from who are not receiving bills, prescriptions and other essential mail on time or at all,” Casey said. “This bipartisan bill will help begin to solve this problem.”

U.S. Sen. Pat Toomey, R-Lehigh Valley, said the postal service reform bill “over-promised and under-delivered.”

“The Postal Service is intended to operate as a self-financing, independent entity,” Toomey said. “However, this legislation requires taxpayers to foot the bill for retiree health benefits that the Postal Service promised to employees in retirement by shifting billions of dollars’ worth of their retiree health liabilities onto Medicare Part B and Part D. With insolvency of the Medicare trust fund looming and trillions in unfunded liabilities, Congress should be working to make this important program sustainable instead of undermining it further.”

Casey added, “While we work to implement these much-needed reforms, I will continue to press Postmaster General DeJoy to answer for the harm the changes he put in place over the past two years have caused. As long as mail is delayed in Pennsylvania, we’ve got more work to do.”

Casey said the Postal Service Reform Act will improve accountability, transparency and sustainability of the Postal Service. USPS will be required to provide at least six days of service per week and to create an online dashboard to track delivery times.

Casey said the bill also makes several reforms to the Post Office’s finances which will save USPS tens of billions of dollars over the next ten years. These changes help ensure that the Postal Service can continue to offer its essential services to the American people.

Toomey added, “For the last 15 years, the Postal Service has run a net financial loss and amassed $188 billion of unfunded liabilities, largely related to retiree benefits. Given the critical service USPS provides, it is imperative that any reform legislation update its outdated business model, stop the annual financial hemorrhaging, and create a long-term solution to rein in excessive operating expenses. Today’s bill, however, falls short of even these modest goals.”

PennDOT selects team for major bridge P3 initiative

PennDOT Secretary Yassmin Gramian this week announced that Bridging Pennsylvania Partners (BPP) was selected as the Apparent Best Value Proposer to administer the Major Bridge Public-Private Partnership (P3) initiative to repair or replace up to nine bridges across the state.

The department and BPP will now enter into a pre-development agreement to finalize the design and packaging of the bridges to be built, financed, and maintained.

The initiative includes the rehabilitation or replacement of select bridges — grouped in packages — and all associated infrastructure investments associated with that specific bridge, including roadway and approach work, improvements to nearby impacted roadways and associated tolling infrastructure, such as gantry structures and toll buildings for each bridge.

The first package of bridges, which will include only bridges that have completed the environmental process, is scheduled to be under contract by December 2022, at which time final design will begin, with construction expected to begin between fall 2023 and spring 2024.