Northampton County Council Approved the Creation of New Department, Continuum of Care at Gracedale

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

May 7, 2026

Northampton County, PA– With a vote of 5-to-4, Northampton County Council tonight approved the creation of a new County Department, Continuum of Care at Gracedale, to serve as the County’s integrated care and planning hub for the future of Gracedale. This department will be focused exclusively on Gracedale and, once filled, will remove oversight of Gracedale from the County’s Human Services Department.

This new structure includes a Director of Human Services Continuum of Care who will provide senior executive leadership at Gracedale Nursing Home focused on strategy, external partnerships, funding alignment, and long-range system design. The new structure also includes a Deputy Director of Human Services Continuum of Care, who would handle implementation, cross-department coordination, reporting, compliance, and the operational details that turn policy into results, as well as offering fiscal oversight.

“This proposal is about building the leadership structure required to manage one of the County’s most important assets and responsibilities: caring for our aging residents and vulnerable populations with dignity, coordination, and long-term financial responsibility,” said County Executive Tara Zrinski.

The Continuum of Care Department at Gracedale will coordinate the full continuum of care: nursing care, supportive living, and future campus-based development reflecting the needs of the continuum of care across the 364 acres upon which Gracedale occupies. That approach reflects the direction already being discussed through the Gracedale Continuum of Care items on the Council agenda.

“The Continuum of Care Department gives Northampton County the framework to modernize service delivery, support Gracedale’s future, and align public resources with a more integrated model of care,” Zrinski said.

She also noted that the County is responsible for 1,318 employees across Human Services and Gracedale—a footprint that represents more than 60% of the County’s annual operating budget and spans two physical locations. A Continuum of Care department will give Council and the Administration a single point of accountability for strategy, service alignment, and long-range planning across the care spectrum.

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