Legislature Has Busy Week In Preparation For Summer Recess

During the week of May 26th the Legislature attempted to pass one of the most important pieces of legislation prior to their summer recess.  The Budget Corrections/Capital Appropriations bill (HB 562) was passed by both the House and Senate; however, the House failed to concur with Senate amendments, so the Legislature is scheduled to come back in session on June 10th to iron out the differences between the House and Senate versions of the bill.  The budget corrections portion of the bill is the mid-budget corrections that typically takes place prior to the second year of the biennial budget.  The capital expenditure portion of the bill funds many capital projects such as buildings, roads, etc. throughout the state.

On the health care front, there was activity on the following bills:

            HB 493 – Direct Billing of Pathology Services
                        HB 493, which would prohibit a physician from billing for anatomic pathology services unless the services are personally rendered by a physician or rendered under the direct supervision of the physician, passed the House by a vote of 89-3.

            SB 278 – Colorectal Cancer Screenings
                        SB 278 passed out of the Senate Health, Human Services & Aging Committee on May 27th.  The bill attempts to codify into Ohio law the American Cancer Society’s current colorectal cancer screening standards.  Language was also included that would only require a health insurer to cover the mandated screenings if provided by a contracted provider or facility.
           
            HB 495 – College Student Health Insurance
                        HB 495 prohibits state institutions of higher education from requiring a student to purchase the institution’s health insurance plan as long as the student provides written proof that the student is covered by another health insurance policy, regardless of the amount of coverage or the amount of deductible prescribed in the policy.  The bill received its first hearing in the House Insurance Committee on May 20th.

 

SCI TEAM CLOSE TO ISSUING REPORT

As you may remember, Governor Strickland’s State Coverage Initiative (SCI) Team was charged with the task of developing a plan to reduce the number of uninsured Ohioans by 500,000 by 2011 and to increase the number of small employers offering coverage to their employees.  At a meeting of its Advisory Committee (which OAHU Legislative Chair Ken Statz is a member of) on May 29th, the SCI Team laid out a draft of possible recommendations.  The draft recommendations include:

1. Require Ohio employers to adopt Section 125 premium-only plans to allow employees of employers not currently offering coverage to purchase coverage using pre-tax dollars.
2. Adopt a reinsurance program to fund coverage for uninsured individuals and uninsured workers of small businesses.
3. Extend coverage in group health insurance policies to dependents up to age 29.
4. Provide sliding scale subsidies to workers making up to 300% of the Federal Poverty Level (FPL) to help them purchase employer-sponsored coverage.
5. Enroll more uninsured Medicaid-eligible Ohioans into Medicaid.
6. Expand Ohio’s Medicaid eligibility up to 200% FPL for parents of Medicaid-eligible children.
7. For non-Medicaid-eligible adults below 100% FPL, allow them to obtain coverage, with state subsidies, through Medicaid managed care organizations.
8. Require insurers to offer a basic and standard plan with guaranteed issue in the individual market.
9. Premium rates charged in the individual market should be subject to a maximum rating variance of 5 to1 for all products sold.
10. Require all Ohioans to purchase a basic benefit plan.
11. Provide low income subsidies to people between 100% and 300% FPL to help them afford coverage.
12. The state should create a quasi-public/private organization – a connector – controlled by a board that would help to implement coverage expansion and assist Ohioans to enroll in available health plans.
13. Benefit plans offered to uninsured Ohioans through coverage expansion programs should be affordable and must focus on prevention, primary care and chronic care management.
14. With respect to funding:
1. Ohio should leverage existing funding wherever possible, including federal funding and employer contributions to health care.
2. The state should look within its existing budget to pay for health coverage reforms.
3. If additional revenue is required, health coverage reform proposals should be paid for with broad-based funding from those involved in the health coverage system.

OAHU is reviewing the draft recommendations, but it should be no surprise that we have concerns with several of the proposals.  According to the actuarial analysis, the cost to implement everything would be in excess of $2.2 billion annually.  Given Ohio’s current economic situation it is hard to see how these recommendations could be implemented in their entirety any time soon.  Based on input received at the May 29th Advisory Committee meeting, the SCI Team is making what will likely be minor changes to the draft in the next 2-3 weeks.  OAHU will keep you updated as the health care debate continues.

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