OHA Advocacy Network

Advocacy Report • Friday, May 30, 2008

Justice Stratton to Speak at OHA Advocacy Luncheon

Ohio Supreme Court Justice Evelyn Stratton will be the featured speaker Monday, June 9 at the OHA Advocacy Luncheon, a gathering of 100+ hospital executives and state health policy leaders as part of OHA’s annual meeting. Tickets are still available for the Advocacy Luncheon. To register for the OHA Annual Meeting and reserve your spot for the advocacy luncheon visit http://www.ohanet.org/annualmeeting/default.asp.

House & Senate Still Deliberating Capital Appropriations

The House and Senate have not come to concurrence on House Bill 562, the capital appropriations and budget corrections bill, and are scheduled to return for a June 10 session to complete work on the measure.

Language requested by OHA and the Ohio Children’s Hospital Association (OCHA) and supported by Rep. Shannon Jones (R-Sprinboro) was included in an amendment to the budget corrections bill. The language requires the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services (ODJFS) to report quarterly on the status of cost containment efforts such as electronic claims submission and payment systems and development of infrastructure policies for electronic health records and e-prescribing. Separate language in the amendment would supply just over half of the administration’s requested general revenue fund share to cover Medicaid overruns caused by increased caseload. The administration has the authority to tap the Budget Stabilization Fund for more money if needed due to failed cost containment strategies.

As the legislature continues to deliberate the budget corrections bill, OHA and OCHA will continue working with key legislators and the Strickland administration to press ODJFS on lifting the freeze on inpatient Medicaid reimbursement rates for hospitals. (Bridget Gargan, bridgetg@ohanet.org)

Senate Approves Amended Pharmacy Technician Bill

Legislation requiring training and minimal skill sets for pharmacy technicians in the state was passed out of the Senate Thursday. Senate Bill 203 was amended earlier this week in the Senate Health, Human Services & Aging Committee.

The sub bill defines and sets up requirements for pharmacy technicians, including:

§ that pharmacy technician complete an employer-sponsored training program, which must meet standards established by the Ohio Board of Pharmacy;

§ that the pharmacy technician pass an exam, approved by the Ohio Board of Pharmacy;

§ that the pharmacy technician complete a criminal background check, which must be provided to the employer.

The sub bill also prohibits any person who is not a pharmacist, pharmacy intern or qualified pharmacy technician from preparing or labeling drugs. Penalties to the provision would result in a first offense is a second degree misdemeanor, a second offense rises to a first degree misdemeanor and a fifth degree felony for any subsequent violations. Unlike previous versions of the legislation, Substitute SB 203 does not propose to license pharmacy technicians, nor does it impose pharmacist-to pharmacy tech ratios.

While OHA has not expressed a position on the bill, it did raise some concerns with the new proposal as it was being developed. In a letter to bill sponsor Sen. Tim Grendell (R-Chesterland), OHA outlined its concerns with the bill including:

§ Timeline requirements for passing a national examination;

§ Restrictions on other individuals performing certain pharmacy functions;

§ Results of criminal records checks; and

§ Reckless conduct by pharmacists and other.

These concerns were addressed before the bill was passed by the Ohio Senate. OHA will continue to review the bill’s provisions with the membership, and will work with members of the House of Representatives on outstanding issues with the legislation this summer. The bill is now awaiting a House committee assignment. (Jeff Klingler, jeffk@ohanet.org)

Governor to Sign Maternity Licensure Bill

Gov. Ted Strickland will hold a public bill signing on Monday, June 2, to pen his approval of legislation that will reduce regulatory burden, lower costs and enhance maternal and newborn care in Ohio. House Bill 331, sponsored by Sen. Mark Wagoner (R-Toledo), will take effect in 90 days combining two current sets of maternity licensure requirements, moves from annual maternity inspections to three-year licenses and tri-annual inspections, and creates a maternity advisory council to assist the Ohio Department of Health (ODH) in promulgating rules that are evidence-based and reflect best practices. The bill is the result of collaboration between the Ohio Maternity Licensure Task Force and ODH, and reflects the needs of large and urban hospitals as well as small and rural facilities. (Bridget Gargan, bridgetg@ohanet.org)

Legislation Headed to the Governor for Final Approval

The general assembly passed two pieces of legislation that impact hospitals this week.

NURSE STAFFING PLAN

House Bill 346 is now on its way to the governor after the Ohio House this week concurred on the Senate’s amendments to the “common sense” nurse staffing legislation supported by OHA, the Ohio Nurses Association (ONA) and the Ohio Organization for Nurse Executives (OONE).

The legislation, sponsored by Rep. Jim Hughes (R-Columbus), would require hospitals to create a nursing care committee to include nurses representing all types of nursing services offered by the hospital. The committee will develop recommendations for a nurse staffing plan that is consistent with current governmental or private accreditation standards. Hospitals would be required to significantly consider the recommendations when establishing staffing plans, and provide the nursing staff with a copy of the staffing plan, free of charge, and offer it to others who request it for a nominal fee. Senate amendments, offered by Sen. Sue Morano, made the following changes:

· The nursing care committees created by hospitals must be comprised of at least 50 percent staff nurses;

· Hospitals must post a notice informing the public of the plan’s availability and specifying directions on how to obtain a copy. (Jeff Klingler, jeffk@ohanet.org)

GRIEVING PARENTS ACT

The Senate this week concurred on House amendments to Senate Bill 175, the Grieving Parents Act, which addresses medical situations where fetal death has occurred prior to 20 weeks gestation. The substitute bill would require hospitals to notify a woman who presents herself at a hospital as a result of a fetal death prior to 20 weeks gestation with information about the hospital procedure for disposing of the product of human conception as well as the right of the woman to apply for a fetal death certificate. Current law does not authorize either death certificates or burial permits for fetal deaths occurring prior to the 20th week of gestation, although some parties ignore existing law in order to accommodate the wishes of the grieving woman or family.

The most notable changes to the original version of the bill, sponsored by Sen. Kevin Coughlin (R-Cuyahoga Falls), include the removal the provision of the "fetal death" definition regarding "purposeful termination of a pregnancy." Instead, it specifies that sections of the bill concerning a hospital or doctor notification requirement about miscarriage do not apply in the case of an abortion. The substitute adds that if a father applies for a fetal death certificate, he must also submit a signed and notarized document from the mother attesting she voluntarily provided a copy of a hospital or physician statement confirming the miscarriage. The substitute also adds a provision that the cause of death is not to be listed on a certificate for fetal death that occurs prior to 20 weeks of gestation. A memo outlining the new provisions can be found at http://www.ohanet.org/advocacy/state/issues/resources/sb175memo.pdf (Bridget Gargan, bridgetg@ohanet.org; Rick Sites, ricks@ohanet.org)

House Committee Holds Hearing on Sick Leave Bill, Issue May Reappear on Ballot

The House Commerce and Labor Committee this week held a hearing on House Bill 536, legislation mandating that employers provide annual paid sick leave to all employees. Tony Fiore, director of labor and human resources for the Ohio Chamber of Commerce, said the bill would make Ohio the first state in the country to mandate paid sick days and that it would mean fewer jobs and higher costs for consumers. He also noted the legislation would conflict with other mandates on some employers that must maintain certain staff ratios.

Proponents are gathering signatures to put the issue in front of voters on the November ballot. OHA’s Committee on Advocacy and Policy heard presentations on the legislation at its last meeting and will continue discussing the impact of the legislation on hospitals as well as potential responses from the hospital community at its June meeting.

Proponents argue that the bill would make Ohio more family-friendly while opponents note that the one-size-fits-all policy fails to recognize the realities of today’s workforce and economy. Learn more about the support for and opposition to this issue. (Bridget Gargan, bridgetg@ohanet.org)

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The OHA Advocacy Network is a service of the Ohio Hospital Association, 155 E. Broad St., Columbus, OH 43215-3620, 614-221-7614, 614-221-4771 (fax)

Visit us on the Web at: www.ohanet.org

Direct questions on OHA’s advocacy agenda to:

Bridget Gargan, Vice President, State Policy & Advocacy (bridgetg@ohanet.org)

Jeff Klingler, Director, State Policy & Advocacy (jeffk@ohanet.org)

Jean Scholz, RN, Director, Health Policy (jeans@ohanet.org)

Rick Sites, General Counsel (ricks@ohanet.org)

Stacey Conrad, Manager, State Policy & Advocacy (staceyc@ohanet.org)

Jonathan Archey, Director, Federal Relations (jonathana@ohanet.org)

Laura Landis, Executive Assistant, State Policy & Advocacy (laural@ohanet.org)