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.
Amid Drastic Medicaid Cuts, ODH Director Lays Out Rural Program Funding Plans
Source: Ohio Capital Journal
Ohio Department of Health Director Bruce Vanderhoff, MD, MBA, FAAFP, recently laid out plans for a $202 million federal award aimed at rural health, following drastic Medicaid cuts that will hit Ohio to the tune of $33 billion over 10 years by the Trump Administration.
During overall budget testimony in the Ohio House Health Committee, Dr. Vanderhoff spelled out different priorities for the money awarded to the state through the Rural Health Transformation Program, which the Trump Administration has presented as an attempt to offset cuts in other areas, such as the Medicaid funding cut.
The Medicaid funding cuts will hit Ohio to the tune of $33 billion over 10 years, according to experts. Those and other cuts will disproportionately impact rural hospitals and healthcare facilities.
“We’re not the most rural state (according to the federal government),” Dr. Vanderhoff said. “But we do have important rural areas, and we do have important rural needs.”
Dr. Vanderhoff said the department “felt rewarded” and “felt that we hit the mark” after their application netted more federal funds than he was expecting to receive.
The biggest pot of money received through the fund is $92 million, to be used for Rural Health Innovation Hubs and Clinically Integrated Networks, according to Dr. Vanderhoff.
Read the full article in The Ohio Capital Journal.
Feds Propose Allowing ACA Plans with Lower Premiums, Much Higher Deductibles
Source: Health Policy Institute of Ohio
The Trump Administration’s proposed new rules for Affordable Care Act (ACA) plans next year would shift more health care costs to Americans, with much higher deductibles that could lead to larger medical bills (Source: New ACA Plans Could Increase Family Deductibles to $31,000, New York Times, February 26).
Under the proposal, people who rely on the ACA for their health insurance coverage could choose plans with much lower monthly premiums, but a much higher deductible. This comes after the expiration of enhanced ACA subsidies led to more than 1 million Americans dropping coverage earlier this year.
The new proposal would allow one kind of health plan to raise the annual deductible to more than $15,000 for an individual and $31,000 for a family; those are much higher than current ACA plans. The individual deductible would be eight times the average for someone with job-based insurance.
The Health Policy Institute of Ohio recently released a policy explainer on changes to the federal health insurance marketplace.
Abortions in Ohio Increased Over 15% in 2025, Including Many Out-of-State Patients
Source: The Statehouse News Bureau
The 2025 Ohio Department of Health’s (ODH) annual abortion report shows 25,135 abortions were performed last year. That’s an increase of more than 3,300 over 2024, which is a 15% jump. And it’s the highest number since voters passed the reproductive rights amendment in 2023.
The passage of that amendment followed the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling overturning the landmark Roe decision in June 2022 and state laws on the books banned it. In 2022, the state’s abortion totals dropped to their lowest number since the ODH started recording abortions in 1976.
Of the 2025 total, 20.9% of abortion patients were from out of state.
“I think that shows that the people in our state and in the states around us that unfortunately have banned access to abortion care are getting the care they need and deserve,” said Abortion Forward Deputy Director Jaime Miracle.
Almost three-quarters of abortions were completed on patients at less than nine weeks. A total of 14,916, or 59.3%, were medication abortions that could be facilitated in person or by using telehealth. Deputy Director Miracle said telehealth and the fact that a 24-hour waiting period is no longer required have made access to the procedure more accessible to women in Ohio and other states.
“Patients don’t have to physically go to a facility twice to get access to the care they need. Just that one change of the law in our state has increased access to, to care exponentially, because patients don’t have to have two appointments. That means that frees up appointments, not only for patients in Ohio, but patients from other states who have to unfortunately travel outside of their state to get access to the care they need,” Deputy Director Miracle said.
Read the full article in The Statehouse News Bureau.