Personal Needs Allowance

A long struggle to get more spending money into the hands of over 9,000 personal care home residents came to an end earlier this year.

The personal needs allowance is the amount of money residents of personal care homes keep out of their supplemental security income every month. Since 1993, it was $60.

Personal care homes are private, state-regulated boarding houses for the elderly or those with disabilities. Approximately 50,000 people live in 1,500 of these homes in Pennsylvania.

For years, advocates, legislators and private citizens worked to get a raise in the allowance.

Late last year, the federal government increased social security benefits for those residents, giving them an additional $25 a month.

Residents say they are happy with the raise.

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