Lawmaker Unhappy With DeWine's Vetoes On Medicaid, Health Care

Nearly half of the 25 vetoes that Gov. Mike DeWine issued when he signed the two-year state budget deal with health care and Medicaid, which is the state’s largest program.

A member of the conference committee that worked on the compromise budget deal isn’t happy with those rejections.

Ever since former Gov. John Kasich pushed through Medicaid expansion in 2013, lawmakers have pushed back on Medicaid policy in the budget.

DeWine expressed concerns about cost, complexity and access to care and information in the Medicaid proposals he vetoed.  

Rep. Jim Butler (R-Oakwood) worked on most of those, and said he’s disappointed.

“The DeWine administration is new but so far it’s not promising that I think there isn’t a better partnership as indicated by many of the vetoes.”

DeWine vetoed some language in the proposal for the state to set up its own pharmacy benefits manager, replacing the two companies that now serve as middlemen between Medicaid and pharmacies. Among other vetoes, DeWine rejected changes to Medicaid rates in state law and next year's July 1 deadline for new contracts with managed care organizations. He vetoed a plan to get permission from the federal government to establish shared services programs. He also struck proposals to would automatically designate a nursing home or assisted living facility as a person's authorized Medicaid representative, and to set up additional incentives on rates for nursing facilities.

On health care, Butler is upset about DeWine’s veto of health care price transparency, in a requirement for hospitals to provide price information in advance.  But DeWine said state efforts to deal with so-called “surprise billing” could duplicate federal ones.

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