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The State of Ohio

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A new candidate enters the Republican race for governor and vaults to the top. Lawmakers roll forward on the transportation budget and changes on Ohio's weed law. And advocates for food bank customers and Ohioans with disabilities say the state budget is falling short of some big needs. Advocates Joree Novotny and Kerstin Sjoberg join Karen Kasler in the studio.

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00:00:38	A new candidate enters
00:00:38	next year's Republican race
00:00:41	for governor
00:00:41	and votes to the top.
00:00:43	Lawmakers roll forward
00:00:43	on the transportation budget
00:00:46	and changes on
00:00:46	Ohio's weed law.
00:00:48	And advocates for food bank
00:00:49	customers and Ohioans
00:00:49	with disabilities say
00:00:52	the state budget is falling
00:00:52	short of some big needs.
00:00:55	That's this
00:00:55	week in the state of Ohio.
00:01:14	Just.
00:01:15	Welcome to the state of Ohio.
00:01:17	I'm Karen Kasler.
00:01:18	It's no surprise
00:01:19	that Republican former
00:01:19	presidential candidate
00:01:21	Vivek Ramaswamy
00:01:21	is running for governor.
00:01:23	As he officially kicked off
00:01:23	his campaign this week.
00:01:26	But there was a surprise
00:01:27	in how quickly President Trump
00:01:27	weighed in on that race.
00:01:31	Ramaswamy
00:01:31	launched his campaign
00:01:33	for the Republican nomination
00:01:33	for governor
00:01:34	next year with a two day tour
00:01:36	that started in Cincinnati
00:01:36	and then moved to New Albany.
00:01:39	Romney Swamy had been building
00:01:41	to this launch
00:01:41	for several weeks.
00:01:42	As Attorney General Dave
00:01:43	Yost had done before
00:01:44	officially announcing
00:01:44	his campaign in January,
00:01:48	while many term limited
00:01:48	statewide office holders
00:01:50	had been lining up
00:01:51	behind Ramaswamy
00:01:51	as they were announcing
00:01:53	their moves for next year.
00:01:55	The question was
00:01:56	when or whether President
00:01:56	Trump would weigh in.
00:01:59	He endorsed Yost in his
00:01:59	reelection campaign in 2022.
00:02:03	Though Yost had initially
00:02:03	opposed Trump in 2016,
00:02:07	but shortly after Ramaswamy
00:02:07	ended his New Albany event,
00:02:10	Trump
00:02:10	posted
00:02:10	on his social media network
00:02:12	that he was endorsing
00:02:12	Ramaswamy,
00:02:14	who on Inauguration Day left
00:02:16	the Department
00:02:16	of Government Efficiency
00:02:18	that Trump had appointed him
00:02:18	to head up with Elon Musk.
00:02:21	We'll have more on next year's
00:02:21	campaign
00:02:23	for governor, with the primary
00:02:23	still 14 months away.
00:02:26	On next week's show.
00:02:27	House Republicans
00:02:27	and Democrats voted
00:02:29	unanimously
00:02:29	to give a green light
00:02:31	to the two year
00:02:31	transportation budget,
00:02:33	which primarily funds state
00:02:33	highway route and bridge
00:02:36	construction projects
00:02:36	through the gas tax,
00:02:38	but also dictates
00:02:38	policy around public transit.
00:02:41	This budget puts
00:02:41	$25,000 toward Ohio, rejoining
00:02:45	a commission
00:02:45	of Midwestern states
00:02:46	seeking to expand passenger
00:02:46	rail.
00:02:49	15 years after Republican
00:02:49	former governor John Kasich
00:02:52	rejected $400 million
00:02:54	in federal funds to establish
00:02:54	passenger rail service,
00:02:57	the transportation budget
00:02:57	also bans deputy registrars
00:03:00	at Bureau of Motor
00:03:00	Vehicle Offices
00:03:02	from asking non-citizens
00:03:03	who aren't eligible to vote
00:03:03	if they want to register.
00:03:06	An earlier version
00:03:06	would have required
00:03:08	all residents
00:03:08	to present citizenship proof
00:03:11	to register to vote
00:03:11	at those offices.
00:03:13	The transportation budget
00:03:13	must pass
00:03:14	the Senate
00:03:14	and be signed by governor
00:03:16	Mike DeWine
00:03:16	by the end of March.
00:03:18	But it was a party line
00:03:18	vote in the Senate
00:03:20	to change the state's
00:03:20	recreational marijuana law,
00:03:23	approved by voters in 2023.
00:03:25	Republicans approve the bill,
00:03:25	which bans public pot smoking
00:03:29	caps home, grow from a dozen
00:03:29	plants to six or fewer
00:03:33	and limits
00:03:33	the THC concentration
00:03:35	for dispensaries
00:03:35	to 35% for plant products
00:03:38	and 70% for concentrates
00:03:38	and extracts.
00:03:41	Plans to change the tax rate
00:03:41	and where those taxes will go,
00:03:45	or an earlier
00:03:46	version of the bill,
00:03:46	but are now likely
00:03:48	to be included
00:03:48	in the state budget.
00:03:50	As winters
00:03:50	low temperatures have dragged
00:03:53	on, high costs have continued
00:03:53	for food,
00:03:55	housing and utilities,
00:03:57	and that's been keeping
00:03:57	the traffic up at Ohio's 12
00:03:59	food banks and 3600 hunger
00:03:59	relief agencies.
00:04:03	But funding to fight food
00:04:03	insecurity is down,
00:04:06	and governor
00:04:06	Mike DeWine proposed budget
00:04:08	$15 million lower
00:04:08	than the current budget, as
00:04:11	there has been an average year
00:04:11	over year
00:04:12	increase and utilization
00:04:14	of food banks of about 10%
00:04:14	from 2020 to 2023.
00:04:18	I asked the executive director
00:04:19	of the Ohio
00:04:19	Association of Food Banks
00:04:21	what she's been told
00:04:21	about why.
00:04:23	I think we've heard that
00:04:23	this is a time
00:04:25	when the state is looking
00:04:25	at balancing a budget
00:04:28	without some of the one time
00:04:28	federal
00:04:30	funding that they had access
00:04:30	to for several years running.
00:04:33	So we recognize that,
00:04:33	I what I've been told by
00:04:37	governor DeWine
00:04:37	and the team at Ohio
00:04:38	Department of Job
00:04:38	and Family Services
00:04:40	is that the increase
00:04:41	that we received in the 2425
00:04:41	biennium of $7.5
00:04:45	million
00:04:45	per year was considered
00:04:46	from their point of view,
00:04:46	one time funding.
00:04:48	And I've just talked
00:04:48	with them about, you know,
00:04:50	the reality is,
00:04:50	I would love to tell you
00:04:52	that things are normal
00:04:52	for people,
00:04:54	but it doesn't look anything
00:04:54	like normal
00:04:56	right now
00:04:56	in our food pantry lines.
00:04:58	And, you know,
00:04:58	we can't possibly
00:05:00	go back to the levels,
00:05:00	that, are
00:05:03	that reduced right now
00:05:03	and keep up
00:05:05	an adequate response to need.
00:05:07	So you're asking for the
00:05:09	restoration of that funding,
00:05:09	but also
00:05:10	some additional funding
00:05:10	as well to deal with
00:05:13	more people actually
00:05:13	showing up for food banks.
00:05:15	Yeah, we've been trying
00:05:15	to listen with our partners
00:05:17	because we do want to be good
00:05:17	stewards.
00:05:18	We want to listen to folks on
00:05:18	both sides
00:05:20	of the aisle in the House
00:05:20	and the Senate about
00:05:22	what's reasonable,
00:05:22	what's achievable right now
00:05:24	in the budgetary environment
00:05:24	that we're in
00:05:26	and the revenue environment
00:05:26	that we're in.
00:05:28	So we are asking
00:05:29	for an additional $4.93
00:05:29	million for the restoration
00:05:32	of the cuts
00:05:32	and then an additional $4.93
00:05:34	million per year.
00:05:35	That's just simply based
00:05:35	on inflationary projections
00:05:38	by the CBO
00:05:38	for the next couple of years
00:05:41	and then modest increases
00:05:41	in need.
00:05:43	We're looking
00:05:43	at the past couple of years
00:05:45	and going, gosh,
00:05:45	we hope that we don't continue
00:05:47	to see
00:05:47	need accelerate that quickly.
00:05:50	So let's hope that we get
00:05:50	to resolve some of that.
00:05:53	We see some
00:05:53	leveling out in need.
00:05:56	And so just give us enough
00:05:56	to make sure
00:05:58	that we can give
00:05:58	adequate service
00:05:59	to the people
00:05:59	who are coming to us.
00:06:01	And the money that you get
00:06:01	when you are providing food
00:06:03	for people in food banks,
00:06:05	I mean, this is money
00:06:05	that you're getting
00:06:06	from the state
00:06:06	that you use to buy food.
00:06:08	That's right.
00:06:08	This is donated food.
00:06:09	This is people
00:06:09	who personally donate.
00:06:12	I mean, it's not just one
00:06:12	source, it's multiple sources.
00:06:16	That's right.
00:06:16	We blend as many sources
00:06:16	as we can,
00:06:18	and we're really about
00:06:19	rescuing food
00:06:19	in as many places as we can.
00:06:21	Our state funded food
00:06:22	programs are rooted
00:06:22	in the idea,
00:06:24	first of all, that we're
00:06:24	an agriculture state.
00:06:27	Agriculture remains
00:06:27	our number one industry.
00:06:29	Our food supply chain
00:06:29	is a hugely important part
00:06:32	of our state's economy.
00:06:33	And how each of us,
00:06:34	access food every day when
00:06:34	we go to our grocery store.
00:06:37	And we can be part
00:06:37	of maintaining that strong
00:06:40	agricultural supply chain
00:06:40	so we can rescue those
00:06:44	maybe slightly bruised apples
00:06:46	or those strangely shaped
00:06:46	carrots.
00:06:47	Before the horrible days
00:06:47	of the current avian
00:06:51	influenza, we're able to,
00:06:51	bring in small and medium eggs
00:06:54	when new layers are coming on.
00:06:55	And we do that at pennies
00:06:55	on the pound.
00:06:57	We're making sure
00:06:57	that food doesn't go wasted,
00:06:59	and that farmers can still put
00:07:00	folks out to pick the food,
00:07:00	pack it and get it to us.
00:07:04	And we also source
00:07:04	food in bulk.
00:07:05	So those state funds
00:07:05	go straight to purchasing food
00:07:08	that goes out throughout food
00:07:08	pantries,
00:07:10	in all 88 counties
00:07:10	in that in Ohio.
00:07:12	And yes, we're also leveraging
00:07:15	100 million pounds or more of
00:07:15	donated food every year,
00:07:18	working with our retailers
00:07:19	and our manufacturers
00:07:19	to, again, make sure
00:07:22	we're not seeing that food
00:07:22	go to waste.
00:07:24	The people
00:07:24	who are at your food banks,
00:07:27	the people who are
00:07:27	in those lines
00:07:29	and who are utilizing food
00:07:29	banks,
00:07:30	Ohioans with incomes below
00:07:30	200% of the federal poverty
00:07:34	level are eligible.
00:07:35	We're talking about $31,300
00:07:35	a year for a single person,
00:07:40	$42,300
00:07:40	a year for a household,
00:07:42	to $53,300 a year
00:07:42	for a household of three,
00:07:45	64,300
00:07:45	for a household of four.
00:07:48	These these are people
00:07:48	all around the state.
00:07:52	Yeah.
00:07:53	We have about 3.4
00:07:53	million Ohioans
00:07:56	that live in households
00:07:57	at or below 200%
00:07:57	of the federal poverty level.
00:07:59	It's almost a third
00:07:59	of the entire population.
00:08:02	lot of the folks that you are
00:08:04	come to food
00:08:04	banks are also receiving
00:08:06	Supplemental Nutrition
00:08:06	Assistance Program
00:08:08	Snap benefits as well.
00:08:10	And there's
00:08:10	some real uncertainty
00:08:11	about what's going to happen
00:08:11	with Snap
00:08:12	benefits on the federal level.
00:08:14	Yeah,
00:08:14	we are mired in uncertainty
00:08:14	at the federal level
00:08:16	in a lot of ways,
00:08:16	including with Snap and,
00:08:19	just quickly, about 1.5
00:08:19	million or so Ohioans
00:08:22	currently are poor enough
00:08:22	to qualify.
00:08:24	And our participating in Snap.
00:08:25	So it's less than half
00:08:25	of all of those Ohioans
00:08:28	that are income eligible
00:08:29	for our services
00:08:29	at the food banks.
00:08:32	So not only are we serving
00:08:32	another 1.9 million or so
00:08:36	Ohioans potentially,
00:08:36	that aren't poor enough
00:08:38	to qualify for Snap,
00:08:38	but we're also trying to help
00:08:42	fill gaps in those Snap
00:08:42	benefits are inadequate.
00:08:44	So yeah, obviously
00:08:45	Snap benefits
00:08:46	haven't gone up as quickly
00:08:46	as the cost of food
00:08:50	has gone up as quickly
00:08:50	as rent has gone up.
00:08:53	And so folks, again,
00:08:53	don't have as much
00:08:55	purchasing power
00:08:55	with those dollars.
00:08:56	They're also often
00:08:56	being scammed.
00:08:58	Right now they're being
00:08:58	victimized by organized crime.
00:09:01	We have known as 30,000
00:09:01	or so individuals in Ohio
00:09:06	that were victimized
00:09:07	by organized criminals
00:09:07	that are skimming
00:09:09	their benefits
00:09:09	at point of sale devices.
00:09:11	And so that's another problem
00:09:11	we're trying to absorb.
00:09:13	But yeah, broadly,
00:09:13	at the federal level,
00:09:15	we have a lot of concerns
00:09:15	about long term
00:09:18	funding and integrity
00:09:18	for Snap.
00:09:19	In budget
00:09:19	reconciliation talks.
00:09:22	You know,
00:09:22	there's been direction,
00:09:23	given that they're looking
00:09:23	to come up with hundreds
00:09:25	of billions of dollars
00:09:25	in savings in the U.S.
00:09:28	Department
00:09:28	of Agriculture budget,
00:09:29	which ultimately is going
00:09:29	to erode access
00:09:31	to that first line of defense
00:09:31	against hunger.
00:09:33	And we can't possibly make up
00:09:33	for that on our own.
00:09:35	One of the things
00:09:35	that's been talked
00:09:36	about to potentially
00:09:36	give people
00:09:39	who are using those cards more
00:09:39	purchasing power is to limit
00:09:42	the things that they can buy
00:09:42	limit.
00:09:44	For instance, the Trump
00:09:44	administration has proposed
00:09:46	banning purchases of junk
00:09:46	food.
00:09:48	Is that a proposal
00:09:48	that you'd be supportive of?
00:09:52	We never
00:09:52	support something that would
00:09:52	limit access to Snap and why?
00:09:56	I think about that
00:09:57	as a as a mechanism
00:09:58	that would ultimately
00:09:59	limit access to Snap,
00:10:00	is that if I live in a rural
00:10:00	community where I already
00:10:03	may be struggling to access
00:10:03	healthy food,
00:10:05	there's food
00:10:05	deserts in general.
00:10:08	If my retailer now has this
00:10:08	extra level of bureaucracy
00:10:11	that they have to implement,
00:10:13	where they have to somehow
00:10:13	what label
00:10:14	all of the food
00:10:15	that's
00:10:15	inventoried in their system,
00:10:17	and then their cashiers
00:10:17	have to be trained
00:10:19	on what can and can't
00:10:19	be purchased
00:10:20	with their Snap dollars.
00:10:22	You know,
00:10:22	that retailer might just say,
00:10:23	hey, I'm not going to accept
00:10:23	EBT anymore.
00:10:25	And then we're in a situation
00:10:25	where
00:10:26	we've actually worsened access
00:10:26	to healthy foods.
00:10:29	I really think it's about
00:10:29	focusing on benefit adequacy
00:10:32	and on improving access
00:10:33	to outlets
00:10:33	for healthy food themselves.
00:10:35	In the communities,
00:10:36	you often hear
00:10:36	people who are concerned
00:10:38	about the spending
00:10:39	in these programs
00:10:39	in general, saying, hey,
00:10:41	there is a workforce shortage
00:10:41	right now.
00:10:43	There are plenty of jobs
00:10:43	available.
00:10:45	There's a
00:10:45	there's a war on work.
00:10:46	People are people
00:10:46	just don't want to work.
00:10:49	How do you push back on that?
00:10:52	How do you push back on that
00:10:52	narrative?
00:10:53	Well, we did a survey
00:10:53	in spring of 2024
00:10:57	of about 2300 unique
00:10:57	verified food pantry visitors
00:11:01	who responded anonymously
00:11:01	to an extensive survey.
00:11:04	We asked them why
00:11:04	they were coming
00:11:04	to us for help,
00:11:06	and we also asked them
00:11:06	about some of
00:11:07	their demographic information,
00:11:08	because we're asked that
00:11:08	very often, right.
00:11:10	That's a misconception
00:11:10	that a lot of people
00:11:12	unfortunately have,
00:11:15	many of them are retirees.
00:11:17	They're seniors that now
00:11:17	can't get into the workforce.
00:11:20	They're physically unable to.
00:11:22	And, they're they're looking
00:11:22	to enjoy their golden years
00:11:26	and are struggling.
00:11:27	Too many of them are families
00:11:27	with children
00:11:29	who certainly, you know,
00:11:29	I understand that there's,
00:11:33	important conversation
00:11:33	happening,
00:11:35	an important investment
00:11:36	that are being considered
00:11:36	around access to childcare,
00:11:38	access to quality
00:11:38	public education so kids can,
00:11:42	you know, both grow and learn
00:11:42	safely in their community.
00:11:46	And so
00:11:47	their parents and caregivers
00:11:47	can also go
00:11:49	and earn wages
00:11:49	to support their household
00:11:51	so that, you know, open
00:11:51	a conversation there.
00:11:53	But the vast majority
00:11:53	of what the data tells us
00:11:56	is that most of our households
00:11:56	are either older adults,
00:11:59	families with kids,
00:11:59	or people who are working.
00:12:03	Right.
00:12:03	We have, the majority of
00:12:03	folks, are working now.
00:12:08	They are often in contingent,
00:12:08	temporary jobs.
00:12:12	They're going week to week
00:12:13	waiting to hear
00:12:14	what their schedule
00:12:14	is going to be like,
00:12:15	how many hours they're going
00:12:15	to get this week.
00:12:17	And they maybe
00:12:17	don't have benefits.
00:12:19	They don't have paid time off.
00:12:20	So if their kid was hit
00:12:21	with the horrible
00:12:22	flu season
00:12:23	and had to stay home
00:12:23	from school,
00:12:24	how are they
00:12:24	making up those wages? Right.
00:12:27	I think it's
00:12:27	a real conversation
00:12:28	about the quality of work,
00:12:30	how we maintain,
00:12:30	a real sense of pride
00:12:33	in the type of work
00:12:33	that we're empowering people
00:12:36	to be able to maintain
00:12:36	and making that work pay
00:12:39	making sure that people
00:12:39	can afford their basic needs
00:12:41	with the wages
00:12:41	that they're earning.
00:12:43	And as I said,
00:12:43	live with households
00:12:43	a third of people in our state
00:12:46	and live in households
00:12:47	with incomes under 200%
00:12:47	of the federal poverty level,
00:12:50	they're working. They're
00:12:50	just not earning enough.
00:12:52	these are tough times too.
00:12:53	For those who advocate
00:12:53	for people with disabilities
00:12:56	who are looking at both
00:12:57	uncertainty
00:12:57	at the federal level
00:12:59	as well as funding in DeWine's
00:12:59	budget,
00:13:01	especially for mental health
00:13:01	services.
00:13:03	I talked to the president
00:13:03	and CEO of the state's
00:13:05	official protection
00:13:05	and advocacy organization
00:13:08	for people with disabilities
00:13:08	about those issues.
00:13:10	with disability rights Ohio,
00:13:11	you speak out for people
00:13:11	with disabilities.
00:13:13	That includes
00:13:13	people who need mental
00:13:15	health services and support.
00:13:17	So in your testimony
00:13:17	about the budget, governor
00:13:20	Mike DeWine proposed budget,
00:13:21	you talk about
00:13:21	how the budget's
00:13:22	putting money
00:13:22	toward mobile crisis services
00:13:25	for adults and mobile
00:13:26	response stabilization
00:13:26	services for people under 21.
00:13:29	And I want to ask you,
00:13:29	is that related to concerns
00:13:31	about interactions
00:13:31	with law enforcement?
00:13:33	Because
00:13:34	people with disabilities,
00:13:34	according to your website,
00:13:36	are only 20%
00:13:36	of the population,
00:13:37	but make up 30 to 50% of the
00:13:37	people who have interactions
00:13:42	with law enforcement.
00:13:42	Is that where
00:13:42	some of that comes from?
00:13:44	So, yes, definitely,
00:13:44	we want to make sure
00:13:46	that we're building up
00:13:47	a community crisis
00:13:47	response system
00:13:49	that doesn't
00:13:49	rely on law enforcement.
00:13:51	We have that
00:13:51	for medical crises, right?
00:13:53	We have trained paramedics,
00:13:53	and they know what to do
00:13:55	and how to help people
00:13:56	and get them to
00:13:56	where they need to go.
00:13:58	We need something
00:13:58	like comparable
00:13:59	like that
00:13:59	for behavioral health crises.
00:14:01	The law enforcement,
00:14:01	if that's really not
00:14:03	their job,
00:14:03	their job is for safety.
00:14:05	And if there's a safety issue,
00:14:05	they should come out.
00:14:07	But if it's a behavioral
00:14:07	health crisis,
00:14:08	we want people who are trained
00:14:10	for a behavioral health crisis
00:14:10	to be the responders.
00:14:12	So the support by the
00:14:15	by the governor's
00:14:15	budget for expanding
00:14:17	some of that statewide mobile
00:14:18	crisis services
00:14:18	across to every county
00:14:21	and and increasing
00:14:21	the supports
00:14:23	for the mobile responses
00:14:23	for youth under 21
00:14:26	is an amazing investment
00:14:26	to help improve access
00:14:29	to those types of crisis
00:14:29	services in our community.
00:14:31	And there's a difference
00:14:31	between what
00:14:32	you would provide for adults
00:14:33	and what you provide
00:14:33	for people under 21.
00:14:35	There could be certainly
00:14:35	the programs might have
00:14:38	a lot of similar services,
00:14:39	but certainly with youth,
00:14:39	you know, one of the focuses
00:14:41	is going to be trying
00:14:41	to keep them in their home.
00:14:43	Right?
00:14:44	With wraparound services,
00:14:45	you might have to think about
00:14:45	education access,
00:14:47	which might
00:14:48	look a little bit different
00:14:48	for an adult,
00:14:49	where it may be more
00:14:49	about employment, for example.
00:14:52	So yeah, so the services
00:14:52	could look differently.
00:14:54	But they're all going to be
00:14:54	hopefully individualized
00:14:54	to the person and their needs.
00:14:57	So it's important
00:14:58	to have a kind of array
00:15:00	or continuum of crisis
00:15:00	response services available.
00:15:03	You also are watching
00:15:03	the budget for what it does
00:15:05	for community based
00:15:06	comprehensive behavioral
00:15:06	health clinic crisis centers.
00:15:10	There was a working group
00:15:10	that was established to look
00:15:10	into Ohio's six state operated
00:15:14	psychiatric hospitals,
00:15:15	which are nearly full
00:15:15	almost all the time. Right.
00:15:18	And the concerns
00:15:18	about how a person
00:15:19	basically needs to interact
00:15:19	with the criminal
00:15:21	justice system
00:15:21	to get these services.
00:15:23	Is this all kind of
00:15:23	wrapped into that?
00:15:25	It could be compared to that.
00:15:26	Certainly
00:15:26	having more crisis services,
00:15:29	whether it's in the community
00:15:29	or at a center
00:15:32	like these new centers
00:15:32	that they're investing
00:15:33	in, can certainly divert
00:15:33	individuals
00:15:35	from a having involvement,
00:15:37	criminal justice
00:15:37	when they shouldn't,
00:15:39	or needing to maybe go
00:15:39	into a psychiatric hospital,
00:15:41	whether that's a private or
00:15:41	a state psychiatric hospital.
00:15:44	And unless you have, you know,
00:15:44	applicable insurance,
00:15:46	you're not going to get in a
00:15:46	private psychiatric hospital.
00:15:48	Right.
00:15:48	And we know a lot of people
00:15:48	don't have that,
00:15:51	which does then leave state
00:15:51	service systems or county
00:15:53	Board of Mental Health
00:15:53	funded service systems.
00:15:56	And you're really interested
00:15:56	in the whole idea
00:15:57	of community
00:15:57	based behavioral centers
00:16:01	that that keeps people
00:16:01	in their community
00:16:04	close to their family
00:16:04	and friends
00:16:05	and other support systems.
00:16:05	Absolutely.
00:16:07	Having services in
00:16:07	the community is the best way
00:16:10	to receive any kind of
00:16:12	supportive services,
00:16:12	even medical services.
00:16:14	You know, when we can
00:16:15	we try to keep people
00:16:15	in their homes, right?
00:16:16	We don't hospitalized them
00:16:16	unnecessarily,
00:16:19	so we want to provide
00:16:19	those services.
00:16:20	It's less disruptive
00:16:20	so they can
00:16:22	maintain employment,
00:16:22	maintain relationships
00:16:24	with friends and family,
00:16:25	stay in their homes
00:16:25	and maintain housing,
00:16:28	which can also be an issue,
00:16:29	right,
00:16:29	of insecurity of housing.
00:16:31	So having those supports
00:16:31	in the community, whether it's
00:16:34	while
00:16:34	they're in their apartment
00:16:35	or in a sort of short term
00:16:35	community center
00:16:37	that's nearby, and it's
00:16:37	going to get them back
00:16:39	to their regular life
00:16:39	as quickly as possible.
00:16:42	You also know that
00:16:42	the budget would move
00:16:42	recreational marijuana revenue
00:16:46	to funding the 988
00:16:46	Suicide Intervention
00:16:49	Prevention hotline,
00:16:49	along with funding
00:16:50	county jails
00:16:50	and police training.
00:16:52	Is that the funding source
00:16:54	that you would like to see
00:16:54	for the 988 hotline?
00:16:56	You know, we are not,
00:16:56	don't have an opinion
00:16:58	about what
00:16:58	the funding source of.
00:16:59	We were just glad that there's
00:17:00	going to be additional
00:17:00	funding for nine and eight.
00:17:02	I think it's a good use of
00:17:02	that additional state revenue.
00:17:05	I'm glad to see
00:17:05	it being invested
00:17:06	back into a community need
00:17:06	that we know is is out there
00:17:09	on these issues in general.
00:17:10	Is there is the funding
00:17:10	adequate?
00:17:12	Do you feel like
00:17:13	or is that kind of
00:17:13	is it ever going to be enough?
00:17:17	It's not adequate.
00:17:18	You know, we back in the 1980s
00:17:18	just short history lesson
00:17:22	when there was
00:17:22	the Mental Health Act,
00:17:24	and we made the intentional
00:17:25	decision as a nation
00:17:25	to move away from long term
00:17:28	institutionalization of people
00:17:30	that had psychiatric diagnoses
00:17:30	or behavioral health needs.
00:17:33	There was a promise
00:17:33	that was never kept
00:17:36	of providing those services
00:17:37	in the community
00:17:37	and funding the community.
00:17:39	That didn't happen.
00:17:40	And so we've ended up
00:17:40	with this very inadequate.
00:17:43	It fragmented.
00:17:45	I'm not even sure it's
00:17:45	called a system that ends up
00:17:49	relying on law enforcement,
00:17:49	jails, prisons, nursing homes.
00:17:52	People don't realize,
00:17:53	but a lot of people
00:17:53	with behavioral
00:17:54	health
00:17:54	needs end up in nursing homes,
00:17:56	which makes absolutely
00:17:56	no sense for most of them.
00:17:58	And in our system,
00:18:00	the actual behavioral health
00:18:01	system, particularly
00:18:01	the parts that are in
00:18:02	the community,
00:18:02	were never fully invested.
00:18:05	So while we are pleased
00:18:07	that there are going
00:18:07	to be further investments
00:18:07	in this budget
00:18:09	in crisis response,
00:18:10	and that's
00:18:10	absolutely necessary,
00:18:11	more investments
00:18:11	will be needed
00:18:13	in order
00:18:13	to fully build up that system
00:18:15	to where it needs to be.
00:18:16	And you have investments
00:18:16	at the state level,
00:18:18	but also at the federal level.
00:18:19	That's caused some uncertainty
00:18:19	in the last couple of weeks.
00:18:22	President
00:18:22	Trump had an executive order
00:18:24	to pause federal grant
00:18:24	and loan funding.
00:18:27	And you write on your website
00:18:27	that that was confusing
00:18:30	and chaotic
00:18:30	for a period there.
00:18:32	What's happened since then?
00:18:33	And are you concerned
00:18:34	that there are more changes
00:18:34	in this area coming?
00:18:36	So I think the thing is,
00:18:37	since then, of course,
00:18:37	there's been court challenges
00:18:39	that have stopped
00:18:39	those initial funding freezes.
00:18:42	But I think what what
00:18:43	we're really concerned about
00:18:43	is what's going to happen
00:18:45	at the federal appropriations
00:18:45	level. Right?
00:18:47	They just
00:18:48	voted a day or two ago,
00:18:48	right on the top line numbers.
00:18:51	And they want to save, like,
00:18:51	I think, over 800 billion
00:18:55	in the House bill to do that.
00:18:57	Well, they're saying it's not
00:18:57	necessarily about Medicaid.
00:18:59	It has to be about Medicaid.
00:19:01	That's like the one of the
00:19:02	biggest discretionary items
00:19:02	in the federal budget.
00:19:05	And we're concerned
00:19:06	that changes to Medicaid
00:19:06	are going to,
00:19:08	you know, impact people
00:19:08	obviously,
00:19:10	accessing mental health
00:19:10	services, for example,
00:19:12	I think it's about
00:19:12	47% of Ohioans
00:19:15	get mental health services
00:19:15	through some form of Medicaid.
00:19:17	And many of them are likely
00:19:17	through things
00:19:19	like the Group
00:19:19	eight expansion,
00:19:21	which if they reduced
00:19:22	federal match
00:19:22	for that, the state budget
00:19:25	then has a trigger
00:19:25	to just get rid of it.
00:19:27	And that could impact
00:19:28	700,000 Ohioans
00:19:28	for coverage in general.
00:19:31	But Medicaid is also
00:19:33	the only way, really,
00:19:33	for people with disabilities
00:19:35	to get long term services
00:19:35	and supports,
00:19:38	whether in the community
00:19:39	or in a nursing facility type
00:19:39	setting, for example.
00:19:42	You can't get that through
00:19:42	private
00:19:43	health insurance,
00:19:43	not even through Medicare.
00:19:45	short term in-home services,
00:19:45	Beyond a short term stay or
00:19:49	you have to,
00:19:49	unfortunately, access
00:19:51	Medicaid to get things like
00:19:51	personal care, homemaker care,
00:19:55	those activities with daily
00:19:55	living that
00:19:56	people with disabilities
00:19:56	need help with transportation,
00:19:59	employment supports nursing
00:19:59	care in the home,
00:20:02	all of those types
00:20:02	of services,
00:20:04	and any sort of changes
00:20:04	to Medicaid, whether it's per
00:20:07	capita cuts or block grants,
00:20:09	they're going to have
00:20:09	a disproportionate impact
00:20:11	on the people
00:20:11	with the highest needs.
00:20:12	People with significant needs
00:20:12	because of their disability.
00:20:16	Medicaid is about 18%.
00:20:18	Is, is that population
00:20:18	the aging, blind and disabled
00:20:21	population of eligibility?
00:20:23	But there are about
00:20:23	47% of the cost
00:20:25	because of
00:20:25	the increased needs.
00:20:27	And they're going to
00:20:27	get hit the hardest
00:20:28	because a lot of those
00:20:28	long term
00:20:30	services,
00:20:30	the supports in the community
00:20:31	are optional services.
00:20:33	And guess where the state's
00:20:33	going to have to make cuts
00:20:35	that they have to make hard
00:20:35	choices.
00:20:36	I also want to ask you
00:20:36	about a constant target
00:20:39	by Republicans
00:20:39	at the federal level
00:20:41	for elimination of this
00:20:41	Department of Education.
00:20:44	There
00:20:44	would be a serious impact
00:20:46	on people
00:20:46	and kids
00:20:46	with disabilities in Ohio
00:20:48	if the Department of Education
00:20:48	were eliminated.
00:20:50	Is that right? Absolutely.
00:20:52	So there's a couple concerns
00:20:52	there.
00:20:54	One is what's going to happen
00:20:54	to the actual funding that
00:20:57	we get through, like idea
00:20:57	which idea
00:21:00	which is not necessarily
00:21:00	directly
00:21:02	tied to whether the Department
00:21:02	of Education
00:21:03	exists, but is of concern
00:21:05	if they're talking
00:21:05	about trying to reduce support
00:21:07	for education
00:21:07	at the federal level
00:21:09	or divert
00:21:09	those supports into things
00:21:12	like vouchers, which in Ohio
00:21:12	at least require students
00:21:16	and parents to waive
00:21:16	their rights under the Ada
00:21:18	to a fair and appropriate
00:21:18	public education
00:21:20	in order to access access
00:21:20	that type of funding.
00:21:23	There's also the concern
00:21:23	that not only would
00:21:26	would funding directly
00:21:26	for student services
00:21:28	potentially be impacted,
00:21:29	but funding for teacher
00:21:29	training,
00:21:31	which currently goes through
00:21:31	the Department of Education,
00:21:34	the expertise and standards
00:21:34	that are set by the Department
00:21:38	of Education that help states
00:21:38	make sure that they are
00:21:40	providing
00:21:40	appropriate services,
00:21:42	standards that make sure
00:21:42	that there's a certain
00:21:45	level of services provided
00:21:45	to students with disabilities.
00:21:48	Before the Ida,
00:21:48	many students didn't
00:21:49	get educated in public schools
00:21:49	at all, and even today,
00:21:52	we still have
00:21:52	a pretty big achievement gap
00:21:55	for students with disabilities
00:21:56	on things like math
00:21:56	and reading and graduation.
00:22:00	And that doesn't need to be
00:22:00	the case unless, you know,
00:22:02	there's only a couple percent
00:22:02	of students with disabilities
00:22:05	that might not be able
00:22:05	to learn the curriculum
00:22:07	that all students learn,
00:22:08	but we still have
00:22:08	this achievement gap.
00:22:11	Any cuts to funding,
00:22:11	any cuts to that oversight
00:22:13	sort of standards
00:22:14	and support is going to impact
00:22:14	and worsen that.
00:22:18	And ultimately that has
00:22:18	an impact on all of us, right?
00:22:20	People are going to be less
00:22:20	prepared to work.
00:22:22	We're going to be less
00:22:22	competitive in the labor force
00:22:25	in Ohio, nationwide
00:22:25	and internationally.
00:22:27	So the idea that special needs
00:22:27	students and students
00:22:30	with disabilities
00:22:30	can be educated differently,
00:22:33	they don't need to be
00:22:33	in the mainstream population.
00:22:35	How does that help them?
00:22:35	It many of these students
00:22:35	can actually learn
00:22:39	alongside other
00:22:41	differently abled students.
00:22:42	Absolutely.
00:22:43	And one of the standards
00:22:43	that the Department
00:22:44	of Education
00:22:44	currently tracks data on.
00:22:46	And make sure that, you know,
00:22:46	certain standards are met,
00:22:49	is that concept of least
00:22:49	restrictive environment
00:22:51	and making sure
00:22:52	they're getting access
00:22:52	to that general education
00:22:52	curriculum
00:22:54	that all other students
00:22:54	are getting access to.
00:22:57	I want to ask you about, drew
00:22:59	and your advocacy in general.
00:23:01	You are.
00:23:01	Ohio's protection and advocacy
00:23:03	organization is required
00:23:03	by federal law.
00:23:05	States all have these.
00:23:06	Your organization
00:23:06	has gotten some criticism
00:23:08	from family members
00:23:08	of severely disabled people
00:23:11	for legal actions
00:23:11	that you've taken.
00:23:13	There was also an effort
00:23:13	a couple years ago to reassign
00:23:16	drew as the state's and
00:23:16	a system that did not happen.
00:23:20	There's been this long
00:23:20	standing debate over
00:23:23	what is the best
00:23:23	housing option.
00:23:25	Is it, independent living
00:23:25	or is it in the
00:23:28	intermediate care facilities?
00:23:30	And there was a
00:23:30	joint committee
00:23:31	that was formed in 2021
00:23:31	to review all this
00:23:33	and everything it was supposed
00:23:33	to meet every two years.
00:23:36	It has what's going on
00:23:36	with all of this?
00:23:39	So as you said,
00:23:39	the joint committee
00:23:40	hasn't met since its initial
00:23:40	hearing in 2022.
00:23:43	We were very disappointed
00:23:43	that even though
00:23:45	there were many individuals
00:23:45	with disabilities
00:23:47	and family members
00:23:47	that came in and spoke
00:23:49	about the importance
00:23:50	of having access
00:23:50	and further investments
00:23:52	in home
00:23:52	and community based services,
00:23:54	and why they thought
00:23:54	that advocacy by Dr.
00:23:56	Ro to try to expand
00:23:56	access was important.
00:24:00	That wasn't even considered.
00:24:01	It wasn't included
00:24:01	in any of the committee
00:24:03	reports or recommendations.
00:24:05	So that was very disappointing
00:24:05	to us.
00:24:07	But,
00:24:07	you know,
00:24:08	today we're you know,
00:24:08	we're as you said,
00:24:10	we're still the protection
00:24:10	and advocacy system.
00:24:12	We're still here.
00:24:13	We've
00:24:13	always been led by people
00:24:14	with disabilities
00:24:14	at our board level,
00:24:16	at the individual client level
00:24:16	and at our systemic level,
00:24:19	whether that's, you know,
00:24:19	advocacy at a legal, you know,
00:24:22	class action kind of level
00:24:22	or in the policy world.
00:24:25	And we're going to continue
00:24:25	to do that.
00:24:26	We don't tell people
00:24:26	what the best option is.
00:24:29	We give them information
00:24:29	about those options.
00:24:32	And we provide advocacy
00:24:32	based on what
00:24:34	people with disabilities
00:24:34	say is most important.
00:24:37	And what they have
00:24:37	consistently told us is
00:24:39	we need more access to home
00:24:39	and community based services.
00:24:41	That's where we see
00:24:41	the most significant barriers
00:24:43	and limitations to access,
00:24:43	and we're trying to fix that.
00:24:46	State lawmakers had called
00:24:46	for a joint committee
00:24:49	to review concerns raised
00:24:50	by some family members
00:24:50	about disability rights.
00:24:52	Ohio's advocacy in 2022.
00:24:55	After two meetings,
00:24:56	a series of recommendations
00:24:56	were issued that drew says
00:25:00	were disappointing
00:25:00	because they didn't
00:25:01	take into account the support
00:25:01	the organization
00:25:03	has gotten from other family
00:25:03	members.
00:25:05	The joint committee
00:25:06	was supposed to meet
00:25:06	every two years,
00:25:08	but is not convened
00:25:09	since those recommendations
00:25:09	were issued.
00:25:12	And that is it for this week
00:25:12	for my colleagues
00:25:13	at the Statehouse News
00:25:13	Bureau of Ohio Public Media.
00:25:15	Thanks for watching.
00:25:16	Please check out our website
00:25:16	at State news.org
00:25:18	or find us online by searching
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00:26:09	and well-being of Ohioans,
00:26:12	offering health insurance
00:26:12	plans, as well as dental,
00:26:15	vision and wellness programs
00:26:15	to help people
00:26:17	achieve their goals
00:26:17	and remain healthy.
00:26:19	More at Med mutual.com.
00:26:21	The law offices of Porter,
00:26:21	right, Morris and Arthur LLP.
00:26:24	Porter Wright is dedicated
00:26:24	to bringing inspired legal
00:26:27	outcomes to the Ohio business
00:26:27	community.
00:26:30	More at porterwright.com.
00:26:31	Porter Wright
00:26:31	inspired Every day
00:26:34	in Ohio Education Association,
00:26:34	representing 120,000
00:26:37	educators who are united
00:26:37	in their mission
00:26:39	to create the excellent
00:26:39	public schools.
00:26:41	Every child
00:26:41	deserves more at OHEA.org.

Note : Transcripts are compiled from uncorrected captions