Several Lancaster County health care facilities will receive more than $6 million in funding to retain and recruit hospital nurses.

The money is part of $225 million in statewide relief funded through the American Rescue Plan, with $210 million earmarked to recruit and retain staff at acute-care and general hospitals as well as behavioral health facilities.

Another $15 million will quadruple the funds available for the Pennsylvania High Education Assistance Agency’s nurse loan forgiveness program.

Pennsylvania House Rep. John Lawrence’s office confirmed a list obtained by LNP | LancasterOnline showing the funding breakdown. Lawrence’s 13th Legislative District is mostly in Chester County, but includes Sadsbury Township and Christiana in Lancaster County.

Penn Medicine Lancaster General Health will receive the most funds, with $5 million to be split among three of its hospitals.

“We greatly appreciate the collaborative work by the Legislature and Gov. Wolf to provide critical assistance to hospitals and front-line healthcare workers,” John Lines, an LG Health spokesperson, said in an email. “We await word from the state as to the amount of relief designated for Penn Medicine Lancaster General Health.”

Two WellSpan Health facilities will receive more than $500,000, and UPMC Lititz will receive more than $400,000.

Pennsylvania House Speaker Bryan Cutler called the funding an important step in supporting the pandemic’s front-line workers.

“There has never been a remote work option for our healthcare and EMS heroes, they continue to make sacrifices to help our communities recover and heal,” the southern Lancaster County Republican said in a statement after the bill was signed into law Jan. 26.

The funding will also provide debt relief to nursing students, considered a critical step in a health-care staffing crisis.

“As we await further information from the Department of Human Services about specifics, we applaud the Pennsylvania House and Senate leaders and members of the General Assembly who have committed themselves to addressing the need to recruit and retain our front-line caregivers,” Holly Lorenz, UPMC chief nurse executive said in an email to LNP | LancasterOnline.

In December, UPMC announced its own in-house traveling nurse program to cut costs and retain workers.

UPMC Lititz will receive $421,352.

Dr. Michael Seim, WellSpan Health senior vice president and chief quality officer, agreed.

“Having just experienced our highest surge of hospitalizations related to the COVID-19 pandemic thus far, we are greatly appreciative of the support offered by the General Assembly and Governor at this unprecedented time,” Seim said in a statement to LNP | LancasterOnline.

“As we approach the two-year anniversary of the pandemic here in South Central Pennsylvania, our health care teams continue their tireless efforts to provide compassionate and life-saving service to the patients who come to us for care — and this assistance supports their efforts.”

WellSpan Ephrata Community Hospital will receive $480,277, while WellSpan Health’s Philhaven Diversion will get $30,665.

Gov. Tom Wolf signed the bipartisan bill into law last week to help hospitals in the worsening staffing crisis.

The bill is just the latest in the Wolf administration’s effort to address the hospital staffing crisis. In December, Wolf requested FEMA to provide staffing support in the form of “strike teams,” one of which was deployed to WellSpan York at the beginning of the new year.

A hospital survey conducted in December by the Hospital and Healthsystem Association of Pennsylvania found vacancy rates for nurses providing direct patient care have increased nearly 30% since 2019. The need is even greater for nursing support professionals, which include certified nursing assistants, and has seen a 40% vacancy increase.

Wolf called the legislation he signed into law last week critical for supporting “our health care workforce and ensure Pennsylvanians can continue to receive quality care for emergency health issues and life-saving procedures.”

The Pennsylvania Department of Human Services will administer the funding.

The allocation formula considered a facility’s proportion of licensed beds at the end of 2021.