On October 22, 2024, Governor Josh Shapiro signed House Bill 1664 into law as Act 58 of 2024, which was a top legislative priority this Session for the Pennsylvania Dental Association, a client of Archer Public Affairs (“APA”). In Pennsylvania, APA Director, Peg Callahan – Kuskin, has been the key lobbyist for the Pennsylvania Dental Association, which has over 8,000 Members. This legislation is a victory for dentists and their patients, ensuring that dental care remains accessible and affordable across the Commonwealth. This Act provides that insurers may no longer limit reimbursement methods exclusively to electronic credit cards – which often carry high transaction fees – and must instead offer a variety of reimbursement options so providers can choose the method best suited to them.

The new law was passed as H.B. 1664, which was introduced by Rep Scott to apply to dental practices. It was later amended to add language from Rep Venkat’s H.B. 1867 to make the legislation apply broadly to all health care practices. According to a ProPublica article, almost 60% of medical practices said they were compelled to pay fees for electronic payment at least some of the time. These fees can also cost larger medical practices $1 million a year, and small clinics can lose as much as $100,000 due to the fees.

Peg has had a prominent career in the legislative political arena, with over 20 years of experience working with Republican and Democratic leaders in the Pennsylvania Senate and House of Representatives. Peg worked with the Republican leadership in the Pennsylvania Senate as a legislative specialist and has served as a special assistant to the Pennsylvania Secretary for Commerce. She was also the Legislative Director for the Pennsylvania Housing Finance Authority.

With an extensive background in government affairs, legislative policy, political strategy, and issue advocacy, Peg’s experience has focused on numerous issues affecting health care professionals, community and economic development, the hospitality industry and manufacturing concerns.


About Archer Public Affairs


Archer Public Affairs provides full-service government and regulatory affairs advice and advocacy to businesses in New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Delaware. Our members help ensure our clients achieve their business objectives by crafting strategic plans and advocating for their issues at all levels of government. By providing access to key decision makers and timely data, we offer our clients the political and legislative presence that is critical to success.