01/23/2025

OSMA 2025 Advocacy Preview

The Ohio General Assembly began its 136^th session this month, and this means that legislators, including some newly elected officials from the November election, are at the Statehouse ready for business. OSMA’s Advocacy Team is also on-hand and preparing for this year’s advocacy efforts on behalf of the practice of medicine, including work related to the state biennial budget process.

Read on for a preview of what is in store in the coming months: a list of House and Senate leadership, the committees in each chamber, and OSMA’s advocacy agenda.

136^th General Assembly Leadership

House Majority Leadership:

Speaker of the House: Rep. Matt Huffman (R-Lima)

Speaker Pro Tempore: Rep. Gayle Manning (R-North Ridgeville)

Assistant Speaker Pro Tempore: Rep. Phil Plummer (R-Dayton)

Majority Floor Leader: Rep. Marilyn John (R-Richland County)

Assistant Majority Floor Leader: Rep. Adam Bird (R-New Richmond)

Majority Whip:

• Riordan McClain (R-Nevada)
• Steve Demetriou (R-Bainbridge Twp.)
• Nick Santucci (R-Niles)
• Josh Williams (R-Sylvania Twp.)

House Minority Leadership:

Minority Leader: Rep. Allison Russo (D-Upper Arlington)

Assistant Minority Leader: Rep. Dontavius Jarrells (D-Columbus)

Minority Whip: Rep. Dani Isaacsohn (D-Cincinnati)

Assistant Minority Whip: Rep. Michele Grim (D-Toledo)

Senate Majority Leadership:

Senate President: Sen. Rob McColley (R-Napoleon)

President Pro Tempore: Sen. Bill Reineke (R-Tiffin)

Majority Floor Leader: Sen. Theresa Gavarone (R-Bowling Green)

Majority Whip: Sen. George Lang (R-West Chester)

Senate Minority Leadership:

Minority Leader: Sen. Nickie Antonio (D-Lakewood)

Assistant Minority Leader: Sen. Hearcel Craig (D-Columbus)

Minority Whip: Sen. Kent Smith (D-Euclid)

Assistant Minority Whip: Sen. Beth Liston (D-Dublin)

Committees

Of particular note, committees in the House and Senate have been assembled and committee leadership has been selected. Below are committees of note which OSMA often interacts with or expects to frequently interact with in our advocacy work. Notably, those listed in bold are physicians and OSMA members.

• House Health Committee:
  • Chair: Rep. Jean Schmidt (R-Loveland)
  • Vice Chair: Rep. Kellie Deeter (R-Norwalk)
  • Ranking Minority Member: Rep. Anita Somani (D-Columbus)

• House Insurance Committee:
  • Chair: Rep. Brian Lampton (R-Fairborn)
  • Vice Chair: Rep. Meredith Craig (R-Wooster)
  • Ranking Minority Member: Rep. Desiree Tims (D-Dayton)

• House Medicaid Committee:
  • Chair: Rep. Jennifer Gross (R-West Chester)
  • Vice Chair: Rep. Tim Barhorst (R-Fort Loramie)
  • Ranking Minority Member: Rep. Rachel Baker (D-Cincinnati)

• House Finance Committee:
  • Chair: Rep. Brian Stewart (R-Ashville)
  • Vice Chair: Rep. Mike Dovilla (R-Berea)
  • Ranking Minority Member: Rep. Bride Rose Sweeney (D-Cleveland)

• Senate Addiction and Community Revitalization Committee:
  • Chair: Sen. Al Landis (R-Dover)
  • Vice Chair: Sen. Terry Johnson (R-Portsmouth)
  • Ranking Minority Member: Sen. Willis Blackshear (D-Dayton)

• Senate Finance Committee:
  • Chair: Sen. Jerry Cirino (R-Kirtland)
  • Vice Chair: Sen. Brian Chavez (R-Marietta)
  • Ranking Minority Member: Sen. Paula Hicks-Hudson (D-Toledo)

• Senate Financial Institutions, Insurance, and Technology Committee
  • Chair: Sen. Steve Wilson (R-Maineville)
  • Vice Chair: Sen. George Lang (R-West Chester)
  • Ranking Minority Member: Sen. Hearcel Craig (D-Columbus)

• Senate Health Committee:
  • Chair: Sen. Steve Huffman (R-Tipp City)
  • Vice Chair: Sen. Terry Johnson (R-Portsmouth)
  • Ranking Minority Member: Sen. Beth Liston (D-Dublin)

• Senate Medicaid Committee:
  • Chair: Sen. Mark Romanchuk
  • Vice Chair: Sen. Steve Huffman (R-Tipp City)
  • Ranking Minority Member: Sen. Beth Liston (D-Dublin)

OSMA 2025 Legislative Advocacy Agenda

1. State Budget: With the start of a new general assembly, this also means that it is also time for the Ohio Legislature to conduct the biennial budget process. Governor DeWine will first release his proposed state operating budget, and by June, the budget legislation must move through the chambers of the legislature, where it will undergo revisions and additions before becoming law.
   
   

2. Insurance Issues:

• Prior Authorization “Gold Card”: It will be at the top of our agenda to get this our prior authorization “gold card” legislation reintroduced this year. As a reminder, this legislation would establish an exemption to prior authorization requirements and create a system that rewards healthcare providers who consistently receive a prior authorization approval rate for a specific service or treatment in a 12-month period.
• Non-Medical Switching: We also anticipate that legislation seeking to limit the ability of insurers to engage in non-medical switching will be reintroduced this year. OSMA will keep working in support of this issue in order to help protect patients by allowing them to continue utilizing the best treatments available to them for their conditions.
• Copay Accumulator: Similarly, legislation that would require health insurers to count amounts paid by or on behalf of covered individuals toward deductibles and cost-sharing requirements is likely to be reintroduced. OSMA has been supporting this issue for numerous years as well, and will continue to help educate legislators on this and other important insurance-related issues this year.
• Biomarker Testing: An OSMA-supported bill which would have required insurers to cover biomarker testing in medically-appropriate circumstances could be reintroduced by legislators in 2025-2026. If the opportunity arises, we will plan to join the supportive coalition once again and advocate for its passage.
• Other Insurance Reform: OSMA is gearing up to take legislative action regarding other insurance-related issues as well. We have collected an abundance of feedback from members about how these issues are causing administrative burdens, and hope to create meaningful changes in the legislative space that will alleviate these difficulties for Ohio physicians. Some potential areas we hope to focus on:
  • Takebacks
  • Automatic downcoding
  • Network adequacy

3. Scope of Practice: We expect that, as it has been for years, scope of practice for all allied practitioners will continue to be an area of focus in our advocacy agenda moving forward. OSMA is prepared to advocate for physician-led, team-based care in 2025 and beyond. Some anticipated areas of focus include:

• Optometrists
• Naturopaths
• Physician assistants
• Certified registered nurse anesthetists
  
  

4. Public Health Issues: OSMA consistently monitors the legislature for opportunities to advocate for important public health initiatives and is a contributor to ongoing efforts by the state to address issues related to mental health and substance use disorder treatment, health equity, infectious disease prevention, tobacco cessation, prevention of chronic disease, and more. Public health issues continue to remain spotlighted in a unique way in the years immediately following the emergence of COVID-19 on the global scale, and OSMA is dedicated to keeping a seat at the table for physician voices in these extremely critical conversations.
   
   
5. Protecting the Physician-Patient Relationship: We continue to advocate for appropriate legislative and regulatory oversight of the practice of medicine which does not prevent physicians from providing best practice, high-quality care and making the best possible treatment decisions for unique patient care circumstances.
   
   
6. Tort Reform: As always, OSMA will continue to monitor the medical liability climate in Ohio and support stability for Ohio physicians.