What you need to know about Ohio Politics and Policy
Yesterday, House Republicans took a first step in advancing their healthcare reform plan that experts say would gut the Affordable Care Act and slash Medicaid. The goal is to rush the plan through before lawmakers’ spring break on April 8. One House committee — with yes votes from Ohio Reps. Tiberi and Renacci — adopted half of the plan. Today, another committee continues work on the other core component of the repeal.
Since it was released yesterday, initial analysis of the legislation suggests that it could result in over a million Ohioans losing healthcare coverage thanks to the elimination of subsidies, a dramatic rise in insurance costs as healthy people leave the market thanks to the elimination of purchase mandates, and major cuts to the Medicaid program. As a result of lower coverage levels, the Ohio Hospital Association says 1 in 4 Ohio hospitals could close.
The Congressional Budget Office has not yet “scored” the bill – a process that would estimate its impact on the federal deficit and on the number of Americans with healthcare coverage.
Two Ohio representatives sit on the committee that is considering the bill today:
Today, House Republicans are moving a step closer to advancing their healthcare reform plan that experts say would gut the Affordable Care Act and slash Medicaid. The plan is to rush the legislation through prior to lawmakers’ spring break on April 8.
Since it was released yesterday, initial analysis of the legislation suggests that it could result in over a million Ohioans losing healthcare coverage thanks to the elimination of subsidies, a dramatic rise in insurance costs as healthy people leave the market thanks to the elimination of purchase mandates, and major cuts to the Medicaid program. As a result of lower coverage levels, the Ohio Hospital Association says 1 in 4 Ohio hospitals could close.
The Congressional Budget Office has not yet “scored” the bill – a process that would estimate its impact on the federal deficit and on the number of Americans with healthcare coverage.
Four Ohio representatives sit on the two committees that are considering the bills this week:
As Republican members of Congress continue to push forward with their plans to repeal the Affordable Care Act (ACA) – also known as Obamacare – there has been push back from lawmakers on both sides of the aisle, advocacy groups, medical experts, and concerned citizens. The threat of a repeal is fueling many to get informed about the potential impacts of the repeal, add their voice to the conversation, and stay engaged about ways to advocate for the protection of the ACA.
The repeal of the ACA would jeopardize healthcare for nearly 1 million Ohioans, and women would be hit particularly hard by the loss of the healthcare law. Before the ACA, women regularly faced discrimination in the health care industry in coverage, in pricing, and in access to care. The Ohio Women’s Public Policy Network (WPPN) – a coalition we convene of nearly 25 advocacy organizations focused on advancing policies that benefit women and families – recently released an ACA Fact Sheet to show what is at stake for women if the ACA is repealed, and provided action steps that advocates can take to help push back on the repeal efforts.
This week, as Congress is on recess and members are returning home to their districts, the debate over the ACA repeal has taken center stage here in Ohio and in states across the country. There have been calls for Congress members to host town halls so that constituents have an opportunity to voice their concerns with the repeal, learn more about what a replacement plan would look like, and share stories about how they have benefited from the ACA.
However, many Republican lawmakers have dodged these requests for constituent input on the matter of the ACA repeal, including Ohio’s Senator Rob Portman and Representatives Pat Tiberi and Steve Stivers. And while these members of Congress have failed to answer the call for town halls, constituents and advocacy organizations have taken it upon themselves to host their own town hall style meetings and community forums to provide a voice for those concerned with the consequences of repealing the ACA without a better replacement. Join the efforts by finding an event near you here.
Here are 5 other resources to get informed, add your voice, and stay engaged:
1.) Sign up for Women’s Public Policy Network emails for alerts on ACA repeal and other legislative issues impacting women and families.
2.) Visit UHCAN Ohio’s ‘Protect our Care’ Action and Resource Center online.
3.) Watch and share ProgressOhio’s video showcasing real Ohioans stories about why the ACA is important, which they sent to members of Congress dodging town halls.
4.) Read Policy Matters Ohio’s report, Repeal of Health Law Threatens Ohio Residents: Nearly 1 million people stand to lose coverage by 2019, on the impact the ACA repeal would have on Ohio.
5.) Find a Resistance Recess event near you. These events are powered by the organization MoveOn.
Advocates across Ohio were pleased last week to learn that Governor Kasich’s proposed two-year state budget would preserve the expansion of Medicaid, a partnership with the federal government under the Affordable Care Act that has provided health benefits to over 700,000 Ohioans. When combined with subsidies to pay for private health insurance plans through the insurance exchanges, $535 million has been added to the budgets of Ohio families since the law was enacted while the state’s uninsured rate has dropped from 11 percent to just 6.5 percent of Ohioans.
According to Bloomberg, without the ACA, Ohio stands to lose $3.5 billion in federal funding in 2019, an enormous new hole in a state budget that is already tight. Absent a continuation of the federal healthcare law, the damage to Ohio budgets only increases from there. By 2028, Ohio could lose over $42 billion in federal funding if the law is repealed, according to Policy Matters Ohio. That is in addition to the $billions in losses that could be expected at Ohio’s hospitals as a result of repeal leaving fewer patients able to pay.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: 614-220-0150
DATE: January 24, 2017
Innovation Ohio Calls for Delay of Tom Price’s Hearing for HHS Secretary Amid Accusations of Insider Trading
Columbus, Ohio– With HHS Director nominee Tom Price’s hearing scheduled for today, Innovation Ohio is calling for a delay in the hearing until the U.S. Senate holds a proper investigation into Price’s misconduct in response to the new reports that the Georgia Congressman “traded more than $300,000 in shares of health-related companies over the past four years while sponsoring and advocating legislation that potentially could affect those companies’ stocks.”
Janetta King, CEO, Innovation Ohio: “Tom Price has already been shown to be too dangerous and extreme of a pick for HHS Secretary, and now it appears he may be too corrupt as well. We know that if confirmed, Price would work to take away health care from 30 million Americans and replace Medicare with a voucher system that would skyrocket seniors’ health costs. But the recent reports concerning Price’s introduction of legislation that would directly benefit his medical stock investments now calls his ethics into question, not just his extreme agenda that would undermine America’s health security. We don’t need an HHS director that puts his personal wealth above the health needs of the American people.
“The accusations of insider trading are too serious to be overlooked, and should be afforded serious scrutiny before his hearing begins,” added Ms. King. Kasich is off base on paid parental leave Governor Kasich has yet again shown that he is out of step with the needs of working families and wrong on the facts. When asked about paid time off for new parents (“Paid leave hurts equal pay: Kasich,” January 9), Kasich argued that new mothers might fall behind in their careers, exacerbating the income gap between women and men as justification for opposing paid parental leave. His argument is both wrong and wrongheaded. Studies show women who take paid time off after having a baby actually earn higher incomes in future years than women who do not. That’s because paid leave allows working moms to stay in their job and continue to advance in their careers. However, when paid leave isn’t offered, mothers can be forced to choose between caring for their newborn and continuing to earn their paycheck. When faced with this choice, many women drop out of the work force, which means that when they resume their careers they do so with less experience and ultimately lower pay. Further, paid parental leave shouldn’t be just for moms. In other countries, paid leave for new fathers is provided as a way to narrow the wage gap. That is, when dads leave work to care for a new child, their partners can return to work sooner, and continue advancing in their careers. And men who take parental leave are more likely to share caregiving responsibilities throughout a child’s life, giving their partners freedom to more actively pursue their careers. And no one is arguing for an employer mandate, as Gov. Kasich suggested. Proposals currently pending in Congress would follow the lead of four states that already allow workers to pay into a universal insurance pool that provides partial wage replacement during caregiving leaves. These proposals can actually save employers money. Finally, Kasich’s suggestion that new moms should telecommute ignores both the need for bonding time and the workplace realities of many women. Babies whose moms (or dads) are chained to a computer and telephone all day miss out on those critical benefits. And for the disproportionate share of service, retail and other low-wage workers who are women, telecommuting is not an option. Terra Goodnight Policy Director, Innovation Ohio
Now, Kasich is proposing to reduce that to 138 percent, forcing thousands of low-income women to go without coverage or purchase it on the private market. But monthly premiums and cost-sharing can make private coverage unaffordable for many women, and short enrollment periods can mean women can go months of their pregnancies without coverage.
At least five other states have made moves to reduce eligibility for the program since 2013, but none have ultimately enacted policies that made women ineligible for healthcare during pregnancy. Ohio may be the first.
Beginning in 2014, Louisiana and Oklahoma lowered the income level for women to be enrolled in Medicaid. But, in part due to the fact that women who become pregnant outside of the 3-month open enrollment period will be unable to purchase insurance on their own, the states moved these women into children’s healthcare programs instead. As a result, women will see their unborn babies benefit from prenatal care, while losing coverage themselves after childbirth.
Proposals this year in North Carolina and Maryland to reduce eligibility for pregnant women were defeated in the wake of widespread opposition among healthcare advocates and legislators, many of whom noted the plan would reduce prenatal care and undermine recent improvements in both states’ infant mortality rates. Access to prenatal medical care is directly linked to infant survival.
Currently, Ohio and Connecticut are the only states where cutting Medicaid for pregnant women remains in play. In Connecticut, Governor Malloy’s proposal was removed from the legislation by the Appropriations committee, but final negotiations are ongoing. In Ohio, the House retained Kasich’s proposal and the cuts remain in the bill as pending before the Senate.
Ohio is one of the worst states in the nation for infant mortality, ranking 43rd, ahead of only Oklahoma, Delaware, South Carolina, Louisiana, South Dakota, Mississippi and Alabama in the rate of infant deaths. The state’s rate of infant deaths is significantly higher than the nation as a whole, and is only slightly below where it was a decade ago. Governor Kasich has made infant mortality a centerpiece of his administration’s priorities. Eliminating a vital source of healthcare for low-income women, many of whom will be ineligible or unable to purchase insurance on their own, is contrary to this goal and won’t help the state’s women and babies. Women may not be getting the health coverage they were guaranteed by the Affordable Care Act, according to a new report by by the National Women’s Law Center, and the Obama administration has warned carriers that the practice must stop.
The April report outlined numerous violations by insurers in 15 states, including Ohio, which included excluding dependents from maternity care, limits on breastfeeding services and a failure to provide preventive services and contraception without co-pays or deductibles.
Late last month, I joined a panel on Capitol Hill to discuss Innovation Ohio’s partnership with NWLC to address shortcomings in plans offered in Ohio in 2014. Our work led to multiple plans modifying their policies for 2015, but the report found that, despite our work, many violations of the law can still be found in policies sold on the Ohio exchange.
The Ohio Department of Insurance, the state agency charged with reviewing and certifying plans for sale on the health exchange and that is headed by Lieutenant Governor Mary Taylor, was notified of the violations but did not respond.
The report was covered by the New York Times, National Public Radio and the Wall Street Journal (subscription required). Following the report’s release, the Obama administration has issued new guidance to insurance carriers that they must cover all FDA-approved forms of contraception without co-pays or deductibles and provide other preventive services to women without cost-sharing.
A report on the coverage of women’s health services by Ohio insurers, including the results of a second review of plans offered in 2015, will be released in the coming weeks.