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HB 353 - PA Title Change
To change the professional title used by physician assistants to "physician associate."

HB 353 is a straightforward bill that proposes updating the term "physician assistant" to "physician associate" throughout the Ohio Revised Code. This change aims to improve clarity for patients, healthcare organizations, and policymakers alike.

OAPA is grateful to Representatives Brian Lampton and Gayle Manning for introducing this bill into the Ohio House of Representatives in June 2025. The bill has begun having hearings in the House Health Committee.

 

View HB 353 Proponent Testimony from Matthew Freado

View HB 353 Proponent Testimony from Melissa Bowlby

View HB 353 Co-Sponsor Testimony from Reps. Lampton and Manning

Learn More about the Pursuit of PA Title Change in Ohio

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Lifting Our Voice

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These bills are a part of a major insurance reform package being advanced by the Ohio State Medical Association (OSMA). The legislation targets the red tape and outdated practices that delay care and frustrate providers and patients. While OSMA has taken the lead, these issues affect all clinicians and our patients. OAPA is monitoring this legislative package and lending support to advance these much needed reforms.

 

Why SB 160 is important, from a PA-C who is also a patient:

"I was started on one medication in April 2025 by my endocrinologist to treat PCOS symptoms in conjunction with diet and exercise. I was doing great on this medicine and was making great progress with weight loss and improvement in symptoms. I was notified in June that my insurance was dropping coverage for this medication starting in July. My endocrinologist office tried everything they could to keep me on this medication through appeals, but unfortunately, I had to be switched to a different medication. While I was very grateful to stay on glp1 therapy, it was very frustrating to restart a completely different medicine after getting used to the side effects and the way my body responded to the medication. In starting the new medication, I struggled with more GI side effects and it affected my body quite differently. It has been a tough transition and one that could have been avoided had my insurance not dropped the coverage for the initial medication mid-year."

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HB 96 - State Operating Budget
To make operating appropriations for the biennium beginning July 1, 2025, and ending June 30, 2027, to levy taxes, and to provide authorization and conditions for the operation of state programs.

As the budget process proceeded through the Ohio House and then the Ohio Senate, OAPA remained actively engaged in monitoring its progress. We collaborated with key legislators and stakeholder groups to advocate for provisions that support the PA profession, specifically, a proposed amendment to establish a preceptor tax incentive. Although the amendment was not accepted into the budget, we will continue to identify ways to support PA preceptors and PA programs in the future.

OAPA provided in-person testimony to the Ohio Senate Government Oversight and Reform Committee in support of the preceptor tax incentive amendment on May 14.

View our HB 96 Interested Party Testimony

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HB 377 - Regards use of light-based medical devices for hair removal
To amend section 4731.33 and to enact section 4731.331 of the Revised Code to revise the law governing the application of light-based medical devices for the purpose of hair removal.

View our HB 377 Proponent Testimony

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SB 25 - Prohibit sun lamp tanning services to individuals under age 16
To amend sections 4713.50, 4713.51, and 4713.64 of the Revised Code to prohibit the provision of sun lamp tanning services to individuals under age 16.

View our SB 25 Proponent Testimony

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HB 8 - Require health plan and Medicaid coverage of biomarker testing
To enact sections 3902.65 and 5164.13 of the Revised Code to require health benefit plan and Medicaid program coverage of biomarker testing.

View our HB 8 Proponent Testimony

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HB 33 - Require insurance coverage for certain prostate cancer screening
To enact section 3902.66 of the Revised Code to require health insurers to cover preventive screenings for certain men at high-risk for developing prostate cancer.

View our HB 33 Proponent Testimony

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On Our Radar

In partnership with our lobbying firm, OAPA is monitoring dozens of health-related bills to assess their relevance to and potential impact on the PA profession. Below are several priority bills for which OAPA is monitoring the legislation and engaging with stakeholders:

HB 508, HB 449 & SB 258 - Enact the Better Access to Health Care Act (to modify the laws governing the practice of advanced practice registered nurses)

A note from OAPA leadership: We want to reassure members that we are actively monitoring this legislation. As soon as the original bill was filed, OAPA leadership connected with our lobbying team to discuss. Guided by our experienced lobbyists, our focus remains on advancing PA priorities while closely monitoring the APRN legislation as it develops.

SB 226 - Regards use of light-based medical devices for hair removal (companion bill to HB 377, see above)

HB 52 - Revise the practice of certified registered nurse anesthetists

HB 253 - To license advanced practice respiratory therapists

HB 12 - Enact the Jeff, Dave, and Angie Patient Right to Try Act(regarding prescribing, dispensing, and administering drugs)

HB 112 - Enact the Conscientious Right to Refuse Act (to prohibit discrimination against an individual for the refusal of certain medical interventions for reasons of conscience, including religious convictions)

HB 324 - Enact the Patient Protection Act (to prohibit certain sales of drugs causing severe adverse effects, to establish conditions on the prescribing of such drugs)

 

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2025 News

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• An Impactful Day for Ohio PA Advocacy: Giving Testimony, Meeting with Legislators, and Building Community
• Advocacy in Action: OAPA Testimony on House Bill 353
• Reps. Lampton and Manning Provide Sponsor Testimony on HB 353
• Inside OAPA’s Ongoing Work to Strengthen PA Practice in Ohio
• Why Do Ohio PAs Need a Title Change?
• Advocacy is Not Optional
• Be the Voice of Ohio PAs – Join Us for Advocacy Day!
• Registration Now Open for Ohio PA Advocacy Day
• Ohio Leads the Way on PA Title Change: House Bill 353 Introduced
• Government Affairs Update: Building Coalitions, Advancing Practice, Improving Patient Care
• OAPA Advances Preceptor Tax Incentive
• Changing Titles, Changing Minds: Tackling Misconceptions in Medicine
• How OAPA Members Can Help Influence Ohio Healthcare Policy
• Download and Share: Must-Have Materials to Promote the PA Profession
• OAPA Leader Q&A: President Hart Welcomes New Government Affairs Chair Freado
• An Introduction to Hicks Partners, OAPA's New Lobbying Firm

 

• Assist with telehealth to expand medical care to more patients
• Allow for consistent follow up with patients who may be out of state
• Expand access to more quality providers and quicker appointments

SB81: Authorized PAs to Sign Hospital Patient Documents

Signed into law in June 2024 and taking effect in September 2024 (in ORC Section 4730.204), this bill:

• Included PAs among other advanced practice providers to permit their signature on documents related to the following (though stopping short of permitting a PA to "pink slip" a patient):
  (1) The admission of a patient to a health care facility for the purpose of receiving psychiatric or other behavioral health care services on an inpatient basis;
  (2) The discharge of a patient from a health care facility after receiving inpatient psychiatric or other behavioral health care services;
  (3) The treatment of a patient while at a health care facility on an inpatient basis for psychiatric or other behavioral health care services.
• Confirmed that a supervising physician who authorizes a physician assistant to sign one or more documents as described in this section is not liable for damages, administrative action, or criminal prosecution for an act or omission that arises from the physician assistant signing the document. Note, however, that this relates only to the documentation in question, not the supervision agreement and its related physician responsibilities and liabilities.

 

 

Signed into law in December 2018 and taking effect in March 2019, this bill:

 

• Eliminated the requirement that each physician assistant supervision agreement be submitted to, and reviewed by, the State Medical Board of Ohio.

 

Find more legislative achievements over the years in this brief history of OAPA and the PA profession in Ohio.