The Ohio Academy of Family Physicians (OAFP) advocacy team monitors healthcare related legislation, rule changes, and legislative updates for Ohio’s family physicians.
To access the OAFP Bill Tracker, visit the OAFP Public Policy webpage and click on the Bill Tracker icon.
Read on for this week’s updates and contact Advocacy Coordinator Kaela Springhetti with questions or for ways to get involved.
AAFP Updates on SCOTUS Ruling on Gender Affirming Care Ban and the Firing of ACIP Representatives
Source: American Academy of Family Physician’s
Supreme Court Decision
Recently, the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) issued a ruling upholding a Tennessee law that bans gender-affirming medical care for transgender minors. The 6-3 ruling concluded that the ban passed in 2023 does not discriminate against people based on their “transgender status.” The justices also rejected arguments from the law’s opponents that it amounts to unconstitutional discrimination on the basis of sex.
In response to this decision, the American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP) issued the following statement on X:
“Following today’s #SCOTUS decision in U.S. v. Skrmetti, the #AAFP remains unwavering in our opposition to policies that interfere with medical care and criminalize physicians. Patients deserve evidence-based care from trained physicians, not decisions made by individuals without medical expertise. https://bit.ly/3ZEq74i”
The AAFP continues to stand firmly against policies that criminalize physicians and impede evidence-based care, including pushing back on legislative and regulatory efforts at the state and federal level that seek to curb access to care as well as criminalize physicians who provide it.
Advisory Committee for Immunization Practices (ACIP)
On June 12, the AAFP sent a letter to the Office of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr in response to his firing of the 17 ACIP representatives on June 9. Following our letter to HHS, the AAFP led a coordinated response to Capitol Hill with the American College of Physicians, the American Academy of Pediatrics, and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.
The AAFP has also been in close communication with Senators on the HELP Committee, including Chairman Bill Cassidy (R-LA), and are continuing to explore additional advocacy tactics in support of future oversight and legislative efforts.
Opponents of Anti-DEI Bill Aimed At Ohio’s Public Universities to Submit Repeal Petitions Thursday
Source: Statehouse News Bureau
The first step is over in the campaign by Ohio educators to overturn the bill that seeks to stop diversity efforts and faculty strikes at public universities. Opponents of Senate Bill 1 will turn in petitions this week from the signature gathering drive they’ve been working on since April, after Republicans passed the law and Governor Mike DeWine signed it.
It’s an all-volunteer effort to turn back Senate Bill 1, said Mark Vopat, Youngstown State University (YSU) philosophy and religion professor and president of YSU’s faculty union. He said he’s not sure how many signatures have been collected across the state, but that organizers think their estimates are low.
“It’s unclear what we have mainly because we’re finding that our petitions have been undercounted. Most of the people who’ve been out there collecting petitions haven’t submitted their numbers. So now we’re finding that it’s 50% and 60% more than we actually thought,” Mark Vopat said. “Right now it looks very good, but we don’t have accurate numbers because now all of a sudden we’re getting all the petitions in.”
Opponents will turn in their signatures to the secretary of state’s office on Thursday, June 26. They need 248,092 valid signatures. If they have them, Senate Bill 1 can be blocked from taking effect on Friday, June 27. Voters would then decide in November whether to keep or repeal the law. If they come up short, Mark Vopat said they have 10 days to make up the difference.
Read the full article in the Statehouse News Bureau.
June Issue of AAFP’s Family Medicine Advocacy Rounds
The American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP) has released its June issue of Family Medicine Advocacy Rounds, a monthly tip sheet to educate, engage, and update you on the latest policy issues affecting family physicians and their patients.
- AAFP Responds to ACIP Changes
- Leading Physician Groups Urge Senate to Protect Medicaid, PSLF, Reform Payment
- Physician Leaders Emphasize Need for Medicare Payment Reform
- AAFP Comments on 2026 Hospital Inpatient Prospective Payment Systems (IPPS) Proposed Rule
- AAFP Shares Health Technology Recommendations with CMS/ASTP
- AAFP Submits Comments to DOJ, FTC on Competition.
Federal Judge Temporarily Blocks Trump, RFK Jr. Cuts to Columbus Public Health Fund
Source: The Columbus Dispatch
A federal judge is temporarily blocking cuts to local health funding by U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., including already promised millions slashed from Columbus Public Health.
In March, the federal government pulled back $11.4 billion in promised funding for state, county, and local health departments given out in response to the COVID-19 pandemic for tracking, treating, and preventing infectious diseases. Federal officials cited the COVID-19 pandemic being “over” as the reason for eliminating the grants.
That included slashing $250 million for childhood vaccination programs at the Ohio Department of Health and $3 million of $6 million in grants to Columbus Public Health, resulting in the termination of 11 infectious disease investigators.
“This decision allows local health departments to be able to do their jobs to respond to infectious disease outbreaks and prevent needless deaths of children and our most vulnerable,” Columbus City Attorney Zach Klein said in a prepared release. The city of Columbus sued the Trump Administration over the cuts in April.
“We will continue to urge the court to make this injunction permanent, and send a message to Washington, D.C., that cities will not back down as this administration recklessly defies Congress, ignores the rule of law, and endangers the health and safety of children and families in Ohio and across the nation,” Zach Klein said in the release.
Read the full article in The Columbus Dispatch.
Medical Board Rejects Petition for Autism for Medical Marijuana
Source: State Medical Board of Ohio
At a committee meeting in May and at the full board meeting in June, the State Medical Board of Ohio (SMBO) reviewed a petition to add refractory autism spectrum disorder as a qualifying medical condition for medical marijuana. After much discussion and consideration of expert recommendations, the SMBO voted to reject the petition for refractory autism spectrum disorder.
Under Ohio law, the following are qualifying medical conditions: AIDS, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, Alzheimer’s disease, cachexia, cancer, chronic traumatic encephalopathy, Crohn’s disease, epilepsy or another seizure disorder, fibromyalgia, glaucoma, hepatitis C, Huntington’s disease, inflammatory bowel disease, irritable bowel syndrome, multiple sclerosis, pain that is either chronic and severe or intractable, Parkinson’s disease, positive status for HIV, post-traumatic stress disorder, sickle cell anemia, Spasticity, spinal cord disease or injury, terminal illness, Tourette syndrome, traumatic brain injury, and ulcerative colitis.
The next submission period is scheduled for Saturday-Wednesday, November 1-December 31. Anyone may submit a petition requesting a condition be added to the Ohio Medical Marijuana Control Program. If a condition has been previously rejected by the SMBO, a petition must contain new scientific information that supports the request.
For more information, please visit the Medical Marijuana program webpage.