Bridget Kosierowski, PA House Rep for the 114th District

Bridget Kosierowski is the Democratic state representative for Pennsylvania’s 114th House District, a Lackawanna County seat covering the Abingtons and parts of Scranton that she has held since winning a March 2019 special election.¹²³

Who She Is

Kosierowski was born and raised in Clarks Summit, one of six siblings. She graduated from Scranton Preparatory School and Villanova University and still lives in Waverly Township, in the neighborhood where she grew up, with her husband Joe and their four children.⁴

She worked as a surgical nurse for more than 25 years before running for office.¹ Her son was diagnosed with leukemia as a toddler and survived, an experience she has often connected to her health care work in the legislature.⁴ When she took office in April 2019, she became the first Democratic woman from Lackawanna County to serve in the General Assembly in over 55 years.

What the 114th District Covers

The 114th is anchored in the suburban Abingtons north of Scranton and serves more than 20,000 residents.¹ It takes in Benton Township, Clarks Green, Clarks Summit, Dickson City, Greenfield Township, North Abington Township, Scott Township, parts of the City of Scranton, South Abington Township, and Waverly Township.³

How She Won the Seat

The seat opened in October 2018 when Democratic Rep. Sid Michaels Kavulich died at age 62 from complications of open heart surgery.⁵ Kosierowski emerged from a Democratic field that also included Wendy Jones, Leonard Longo, and Rabbi Daniel Swartz, then won the March 2019 special election with more than 63% of the vote against Republican Frank Scavo III.¹

She has not faced a close race since. She defeated James May in 2020, took nearly 63% against David Burgerhoff in 2022, and ran without a Republican opponent in 2024. In the May 19, 2026 primary she drew 7,044 Democratic votes. On the Republican side, Lombardo, a Clarks Summit technician who lost a 2025 borough council race, took the nomination with 65.25% (1,673 votes) over David Burgerhoff (860 votes). Pennsylvania House terms run two years and pay $113,591 a year.³

Committees and Legislative Focus

For the 2025–2026 session Kosierowski serves as vice chair of the House Professional Licensure Committee and as secretary of both the Aging & Older Adult Services Committee and the Health Committee. She also sits on Appropriations, Insurance, and Rules.² Her bills follow the same track: hospitals, nurses, patients, and insurance.

Medical Debt Relief

On May 13, 2025, the House passed House Bill 79, a bipartisan medical debt measure Kosierowski co-prime-sponsored with six other members, by 186–16.⁶ The bill would create a Medical Debt Relief Program inside the Department of Health, contracting with a coordinator to purchase and discharge debt from providers and collection agencies. Residents with household incomes at or below 400% of the federal poverty guidelines, or medical debt equal to at least 5% of household income, would be eligible, and discharged debt would not count as taxable income.⁷ It also requires hospitals to use standardized, plain-language financial aid forms and to pause billing while an aid application is pending.⁸ Governor Josh Shapiro’s office has reported that total medical debt in Pennsylvania exceeded $1.8 billion in 2023 and that over 1 million Pennsylvanians have medical debt in collections.

Nursing Shortage

Kosierowski is the prime sponsor of House Bill 1676, the Nursing Shortage Assistance Program, which the House Labor & Industry Committee approved on July 1, 2025. Housed in the Department of Labor and Industry, the program would issue grants to qualified nursing employers, help nursing students line up post-graduation jobs, and repay student loans tied to Pennsylvania nursing programs. Citing the Hospital and Healthsystem Association of Pennsylvania, she has said an average of 14% of nursing positions in the state are unfilled and that Pennsylvania is projected to face a shortage of 20,000 nurses by 2026. The proposal is paired with a $5 million line in Shapiro’s 2025–26 budget and builds on a pilot already running at Temple Health, Geisinger, Guthrie, and WellSpan.⁹

Health Care Workplace Violence

House Bill 926, the Health Care Workplace Violence Prevention Act, which Kosierowski co-sponsored with Rep. Leanne Krueger, passed the House 124–79 on May 6, 2025 and was referred to the Senate Labor & Industry Committee on May 22, 2025. It had not advanced further in the Senate as of mid-2026.¹⁰ Supporters pointed to Pennsylvania Association of Staff Nurses and Allied Professionals data showing reported workplace violence incidents among members rose from 50% in 2021 to 66% in 2024.¹¹

Elijah’s Law

With Rep. Kristin Marcell (R-Bucks), Kosierowski co-prime-sponsored House Bill 928, known as “Elijah’s Law,” which requires training, emergency action planning, and epinephrine availability for childcare workers managing food allergies. It is named for Elijah Silvera, a 3-year-old who died after an allergic reaction at his daycare.¹² The House Children and Youth Committee unanimously approved it on June 4, 2025, and the full House passed it 197–6 on June 24, 2025, sending it to the Senate.¹³

AI in Health Care

On October 6, 2025, Kosierowski joined a bipartisan group introducing House Bill 1925, “Regulation of the Use of Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare,” led by Rep. Arvind Venkat. It would require insurers, hospitals, and clinicians to disclose their use of AI, mandate that a human make the final decision based on an individualized assessment in every case where AI is used, and require covered entities to attest that prohibited bias and discrimination have been minimized.¹⁴ The House Communications & Technology Committee reported the bill as amended on a 19–7 vote on May 5, 2026, and it was laid on the table following first consideration the same day.¹⁵

Other Measures

Her earlier work includes House Bill 941, a prescription drug pricing study enacted as Act 120 of 2020, along with bills on universal maternal home visiting (HB 227), insurance coverage for HIV preexposure and postexposure medications (HB 617 and HB 618), and hospital patient protections under the Health Care Facilities Act (HB 106).¹⁶ She co-sponsored House Bill 439, the Pennsylvania CROWN Act, signed into law as Act 54 of 2025 and effective November 25, 2025.¹⁷

The Commonwealth Health Hospital Sale

Kosierowski took an unusually visible role in the 2025–2026 sale of three Northeast Pennsylvania hospitals owned by Tennessee-based Community Health Systems: Regional Hospital of Scranton, Moses Taylor Hospital, and Wilkes-Barre General Hospital. The Scranton facilities had been financially unstable for years, and a 2024 attempt to sell them to WoodBridge Healthcare for $120 million collapsed.¹⁸

In June 2025 she publicly identified Geisinger and The Wright Center as among the suitors, and by September she was telling reporters she was optimistic a deal with the nonprofit Tenor Health Foundation could close.¹⁹¹⁸²⁰ Tenor CEO Radha Savitala credited U.S. Rep. Rob Bresnahan and Kosierowski for their support, saying she was “instrumental in getting the approval completed for her communities.” Kosierowski has emphasized preserving regional emergency care, cardiac care, and labor and delivery services.

District Funding

Her office has announced a steady stream of grants and infrastructure dollars for the 114th. The largest is a $16.92 million low-interest loan from the Pennsylvania Infrastructure Investment Authority (Pennvest) to Pennsylvania American Water for rehabilitation of the Griffin Dam, announced April 15, 2026.²¹²²²³

Other recent funding announcements from her office:

April 2025: $1.93 million for the Main Street Matters program, secured with Rep. Kyle Donahue.²⁴
June 2025: $413,000 for a local anti-poverty nonprofit.²⁵
December 2025: more than $1.5 million for programs serving women and children, more than $1.3 million for community improvement, $1.7 million for community improvement and museum funding, and nearly $1.4 million in infrastructure investment for Scranton.²⁵
January 2026: more than $2.7 million in state infrastructure funds.²⁵

Campaign Finance

Through May 4, 2026, Kosierowski’s campaign reported $132,413 in total contributions and $144,010 in total expenditures, according to TransparencyUSA. Her top donors for that period included the Pennsylvania Automotive Association PAC ($6,000), Elizabeth Karam ($5,500), Louis and Dominick DeNaples ($5,000), Robert and Kim Mericle ($5,000), and the Greater Pennsylvania Carpenters PAC and Steamfitters Local 524 ($3,700 each).²⁶ State filings for the Friends of Kosierowski committee show consistent six-figure annual fundraising since 2019, peaking at $714,013 in contributions and $552,662 in expenditures during the 2020 cycle, her first full general election campaign. Her 2025 totals were $121,910.65 in contributions and $114,631.78 in expenditures.²⁷

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Penn State Scranton. Bridget Malloy Kosierowski
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Pennsylvania General Assembly. Rep. Bridget Kosierowski
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The Times-Tribune. Lombardo Wins GOP Primary Nod to Challenge Incumbent Democrat Kosierowski
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Pennsylvania House Democratic Caucus. Biography – Rep. Bridget Kosierowski
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PoliticsPA. HD-114: Frank Scavo Becomes Third GOP Candidate to Enter the Race
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The Center Square. Pennsylvania House Passes Medical Debt Bill
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BillTrack50. Pennsylvania HB79
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Pennsylvania House Democratic Caucus. House Passes Bipartisan Medical Debt Bill
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Pennsylvania House Democratic Caucus. Kosierowski Bill to Address Nursing Shortage Advances
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Pennsylvania General Assembly. House Bill 926, Regular Session 2025-2026
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Pennsylvania House Democratic Caucus. Health Care Workplace Violence Prevention Act
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Pennsylvania House Democratic Caucus. Elijah’s Law – Food Allergy Safety in Daycare
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Pennsylvania House Democratic Caucus. House Passes Elijah’s Law
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Pennsylvania House Democratic Caucus. Bipartisan AI in Health Care Legislation Introduced
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Pennsylvania General Assembly. House Bill 1925, Regular Session 2025-2026
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LegiScan. Bridget Kosierowski Legislative Record
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Pennsylvania General Assembly. Bills Sponsored by Rep. Kosierowski, 2025-2026 Session
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WVIA. PA Health Department OKs Tenor Health Acquisition
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WVIA. Bridget Kosierowski Coverage
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The Times-Tribune. Done Deal: Tenor Completes Commonwealth Health Acquisition
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Pennsylvania House Democratic Caucus. Kosierowski Announces Griffin Dam Funding
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The Times-Tribune. Griffin Pond Dam Gets Funding for Upgrades
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PR Newswire. Pennsylvania American Water Receives Pennvest Funding
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Pennsylvania House Democratic Caucus. Rep. Kosierowski News Releases
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Pennsylvania House Democratic Caucus. Rep. Kosierowski In The News
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TransparencyUSA. Bridget Malloy Kosierowski Campaign Finance
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Pennsylvania Department of State. Friends of Bridget Kosierowski Annual Totals