7. Data Infrastructure

Pennsylvania

Various Pennsylvania agencies have used data to improve results for residents in several ways, demonstrating a commitment to the state’s 2017 data executive order. Examples of this include the Department of Health’s use of a common data platform to gather and report data from statewide and national sources, as well as peer-reviewed literature and guidance from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the White House, when making public health decisions related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Data from the platform are publicly reported and available daily. To manage the state’s opioid response, the Department of Health’s opioid data dashboard, which combines cross-agency data, is used to inform policy, budget, and management decisions by the state’s Opioid Command Center, an interagency group of officials coordinating the state’s response to the opioid epidemic and substance use disorder services.

A 2019 Pennsylvania executive order established the Keystone Economic Development and Workforce Command to address the state’s workforce shortage and talent needs, recommend action to reduce or eliminate impediments to employment, and improve alignment of resources with private sector needs to build a skilled workforce and improve Pennsylvania’s economic vitality. The Workforce Command Center leverages the state open data portal for decision- and policymaking through a data dashboard, which is publicly available

Issue Areas: COVID-19, Economic Mobility, Health, Workforce