OPEN MINDS, The Behavioral Health & Social Service Industry Analyst Cover Story On February 1, 1997, Pennsylvania's Department of Public Welfare (DPW) initiated HealthChoices, its mandatory Medicaid managed care program. The program began in the five- county southeast region of Pennsylvania that includes Bucks, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery, and Philadelphia counties. Following that program inauguration, HealthChoices began operations in Pennsylvania's southwest region on January 1, 1999, including Allegheny, Armstrong, Beaver, Butler, Fayette, Greene, Indiana, Lawrence, Washington, and Westmoreland counties. With a requirement that Medicaid recipients enroll in managed care plans, HealthChoices is pursuing three goals as DPW implements the . . .