DeWine Announces New Temporary Pandemic Child Care License

On Monday August 24th, Governor DeWine announced a new program to ensure that students learning remotely have a safe place to go during their normal school day if their parents must go to work.

“With more than 30% of school districts opting for remote and hybrid models of learning for the start of the school year – including many of Ohio’s largest school districts – working families need safe options for their child’s care during the school day,” said Governor DeWine.

Beginning this week, child care providers licensed by the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services (ODJFS) and the Ohio Department of Education (ODE) may care for school-age children who are learning remotely during the school day. These providers will receive funding to cover the cost of care for economically eligible children. The State Controlling Board also approved and released $9 million for these efforts.

Additionally, ODJFS will launch a new license, called the Temporary Pandemic School-Age Child Care license, to ensure children have safe places to go when they are not learning in school. Organizations such as churches, recreation centers, and businesses can apply for this temporary license to provide care to children during the school day. ODJFS is also waiving the registration fee for Temporary Pandemic School-Age Child Care providers.

For more information, please visit https://jfs.ohio.gov/cdc/

DeWine says coronavirus fight has to take priority over safety net

Over the last few weeks AOF and member organizations have been elevating the needs of Ohio families and individuals struggling to keep a roof over their heads, food on the table and the lights on.

At Thursday’s COVID-19 press conference, a reporter from the Ohio Capital Journal asked Governor DeWine what the thought about our proposal to allocate a small portion of Ohio’s remaining $1.3 billion CARES Act dollars to emergency rental assistance, utility assistance, food and child care support.

He responded: “We are not unmindful of the merit of the request. But I think our fundamental goal has to be to keep the virus down, because nothing else can happen if we don’t keep the virus down.”

We would argue controlling the virus and supporting families and the economy is not a false choice. Supporting families to stay in their own homes will help prevent exposure and spread of coronavirus.

Read more from Marty Schladen at the Ohio Capitol Journal HERE

COVID-19 Minority Health Strike Force Releases Blueprint Report

More Than A Mask

On April 20, 2020, Governor Mike DeWine launched the COVID-19 Minority Health Strike Force. This group of advisers worked with state leadership to provide feedback on the immediate action necessary to address COVID-19 and its disproportionate impact on Ohioans of color.

Released last week, this blueprint developed by the COVID-19 Minority Health Strike Force with input from many community members around the state, contains 35 actionable recommendations that serve as a roadmap for the administration of Governor Mike DeWine to advance health equity in partnership with state, local and community officials in Ohio.

The blueprint includes several categories of recommendations; many of which reflect AOF’s policy objectives and continuing advocacy efforts:

• Dismantling Racism to Advance Health Equity

• Reduce discrimination and increase diversity in the health workforce

• Increase access to health care

• Increase access to COVID-19 testing, treatment, personal protective equipment (PPE), and a vaccine (when available)

• Improve access to high-quality education

• Reduce poverty and increase investment and employment

• Improve working conditions

• Decrease arrest and incarceration rates

• Increase safe and affordable housing

• Increase access to transportation

• Decrease the digital divide

Governor DeWine also released is action plan, Ohio’s Executive Response: A Plan of Action to Advance Equity, a culmination of commitments resulting from state leadership discussions to guide the state
enterprise as they begin their strategic planning process. The process will advance equity in Ohio’s systems; promote diversity, equity and inclusion in state workplaces; embed equity in programs and
policy; and provide tools for statewide partners to advance equity in public service.

How Are Kids Really Doing in Your County? 2020 KIDS COUNT County Profiles Out Now

Looking for Data on Child Well-Being?

Children’s Defense Fund-Ohio’s annual KIDS COUNT County-by-County Profile is your source for the best available county-level data in Ohio on a variety of measures of health, education, economic well-being, and families and communities.

By providing policymakers, educators, the media, and citizens across Ohio with these critical benchmarks of child well-being, we can develop a better shared understanding of how children are faring. This pre-COVID snapshot offers a benchmark to guide efforts to respond to the needs of children and families. Further, these data will guide us as we advance local and state efforts to improve the lives of children and their families. These and more data on children in Ohio can be found on the KIDS COUNT Data Center.

Countdown to 2020 Election: Voter Checklist

With the November election less than 90 days away, now is the time to make sure you are ready to cast your ballot and make a plan to do so safely.

The deadline to register to vote or update your registration in the general election is October 5 and early voting begins on October 6. You can check your registration HERE.

Given the health risks associated with COVID-19 for in-person voting, many voters may choose to vote by mail by requesting an absentee ballot. Registered voters may request an absentee ballot now for the general election and do not need to submit an excuse or reason for voting absentee. It is best to request your absentee ballot as early as possible to give county boards of elections and the postal service ample time to distribute request forms.

Have more questions about voting? Please visit voteohio.gov.

Request your absentee ballot today!

More Needs to be Done with CARES Act Dollars to Keep Ohioans Housed, Fed, and Safe

Ohio families and communities are hurting with no end in sight. Many short-term protections like eviction and utility disconnection moratoriums have ended. Resources to support Ohioans who have been laid off or had their income reduced have been made available to help. But the one-time stimulus payments have been spent on food, rent, and other necessities. The extra pandemic unemployment benefit is set to expire.

While Ohioans continue to struggle to make ends meet, pay rent, and put food on the table, Ohio has approximately $1.3 billion in federal Coronavirus Relief Funds waiting to be spent. This money needs to be designated to help Ohioans who are struggling as a result of COVID-19.

AOF, along with 17 of our partner organizations, sent a letter to Governor DeWine and his health and human service agency directors telling them how a small portion of the remaining federal relief funds could be spent now to help struggling families meet their basic needs.

• Emergency rental assistance. Since most courts re-opened in the last month, Ohioans are being evicted. People are losing their homes and going to unsafe living conditions while the virus is spiking in nearly every Ohio county. Some local jurisdictions have allocated money for rental assistance, but it is not enough. A statewide investment is needed. We ask that you allocate $100 million for emergency rental assistance.

• Utility assistance. The Ohio EPA lifted its ban on water disconnections on July 10, 2020. Electric and gas utilities will resume disconnections as early as the end of this month. While some programs exist to help with utility bills, it is not enough to address the need. To stay safe and healthy, Ohioans need water and other utilities. We ask that you allocate at least $38 million in utility assistance to double the amount of federal CARES Act dollars invested in utility assistance.

• Food and basic needs assistance. Recent data from the U.S. Census Bureau’s Household Pulse Survey show that about 1 in 5 adults living with children in Ohio said they couldn’t afford to give their kids enough to eat. At the same time, food prices are up nearly 6 percent, meaning funds to purchase food are even more limited. Applications for SNAP are up 21 percent in Ohio from February to May 2020, yet foodbanks are still experiencing record demand for help. We ask that you allocate $45 million to allow foodbanks to purchase additional emergency food and household groceries, fill gaps left by missed school meals, and secure personal care, personal hygiene, and household cleaning products. In addition, we will utilize these funds to lease trucks, offsite cold storage, hire temporary staff to handle increased inventory, and purchase PPE supplies for our 3,600 member charities.

• National Guard. We thank you for deploying the national guard to assist with food distribution, congregate care and community testing. The support from the national guard needs to continue. We ask that you allocate $10 million to ensure communities can continue to count on the support of the National Guard.

• Child care. Before the pandemic hit, Ohio was experiencing a shortage in our child care supply. The crisis has further exacerbated this shortage due to decreased revenue and increased expenses to ensure programs are following all health and safety guidelines. A recent national survey of providers along with data on childcare deserts have estimated 45 percent of Ohio’s child care supply could be lost without significant increases in funding. The $60 million of child care dollars to support providers will be spent by the end of August. With many schools starting with complete or partial distance learning plans, the childcare crisis will be exacerbated. While we need a more comprehensive child care solution for providers and a parents, we ask that you commit an additional $60 million to assist child care providers into the Fall.

Additional assistance from the federal government is needed, but the timeline and content of such legislation is uncertain, and emergency needs are immediately pressing. The commitment of these Coronavirus Relief Fund dollars to help struggling Ohioans will provide desperately needed support and show that Ohio’s priority is caring for the most vulnerable during this crisis.

AOF Urges Congress To Do More for Ohio's Most Vulnerable

The COVID-19 relief plan released by the Senate Majority Monday doesn’t do enough to help struggling Ohio families or stabilize the economy.

The Health, Economic Assistance, Liability Protection, and Schools (HEALS) Act ignores the hard numbers and the many stories of people struggling to get by. It leaves out substantial aid included in the U.S. House-passed HEROES Act intended to keep public services strong while states and local governments continue to fight waves of COVID-19 outbreaks.

The as-introduced HEALS Act:

• DOES NOT: Increase FMAP, or increased Medicaid funding to states

• DOES NOT: Raise Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefit levels

• DOES NOT: Contain funding for homelessness services or additional rental vouchers, or extend the federal eviction moratorium that expired July 24

• DOES NOT: Include new fiscal aid for states, cities, counties, tribes, or territories

• DOES: Include additional “flexibility” for states — letting them use some CARES Act aid to help offset massive revenue losses

• DOES: Does include a second round of $1,200 stimulus payments for qualifying individuals

• DOES: Provide some aid for schools. However, the bulk of those funds would be for schools that reopen irrespective of health risks and the funding cannot be used for expenses such as teachers’ salaries

• DOES: Drop the federal unemployment-benefit supplement from $600 a week to $200

Ohio has already been forced to make harmful budget cuts to offset losses in revenue triggered by COVID-19. Additional federal funds are necessary to prevent cuts to public services, such as Medicaid and schools, and layoffs for teachers and other public workers.

Th proposed HEALS Act is not enough, and time is running out. We urge Congress to immediately start work on a new compromise COVID-19 relief bill that puts people and the public services we rely on first by:

• Increasing food and housing assistance so families can eat and pay rent

• Covering more of states’ Medicaid costs

• Providing additional aid for child care, K-12 schools and higher education institutions

• Increasing aid for states and cities to prevent cuts to services like education and layoffs for public workers

• Extending expanded unemployment benefits

New Report Shows Ohio’s Appalachian Region Facing Increased Barriers to Child Well-Being; Barriers Increased by COVID-19

This week Children’s Defense Fund-Ohio (CDF-Ohio) released, Children and Families in Ohio’s Appalachian Region: 2020 Data & Issue Brief, a new report that provides a snapshot of pre-COVID-19 issues facing Ohio’s 32-county Appalachian region. The report examines indicators of child well-being in the areas of: economic well-being, health, education, and families and communities.

It is an established fact that Ohio’s Appalachian region lacks access to basic healthcare providers meaning that many children and adults go without the comprehensive care they need. Studies show that about 20% of a person’s health reflects what happens in a clinic or hospital with the other 80% being the result of an individual’s living conditions and the choices they make. For healthcare to work, the rest of the ecosystem, such as safe and affordable housing, job opportunities, transportation, access to child care, and fresh foods, must work. In too many areas of Ohio’s Appalachian region, this ecosystem is disrupted or non-existent. This lack of access to basic needs has a direct effect on the region’s prosperity and the well-being of its children and families.

Poverty creates significant hardships on families and can have lasting effects on children. Lack of resources for a family can mean housing insecurity, hunger, inability to secure transportation, and lacking in other necessities. According to the Ohio Poverty Report (February 2019), 17.2% of the people living in the region were experiencing poverty compared to the average poverty rate for Ohio at 14.4%. In fact, the 11 counties with highest poverty rates in Ohio (over 20%), were all in the Appalachian region. Consistent with this data, a higher proportion of children in Appalachia (23.3%) are living in poverty compared to the rest of the state (19.8%). Today, the four counties with the highest overall poverty rates, ranging from 30.2% to 22.5% are Athens, Scioto, Adams, and Meigs.

For more on the issues facing Appalachia and recommended next steps, check out the full report and the Appalachia COVID-19 Issue Brief.

New Report Shows Top Ohio Jobs Pay Too Little to Make Rent, Pandemic Increases Housing Insecurity

The Out of Reach report jointly released by the Coalition on Homelessness and Housing in Ohio (COHHIO) and the National Low Income Housing Coalition (NLIHC) found that Ohio’s Housing Wage – the hourly amount renters need to earn to afford a basic, two-bedroom apartment – increased this year to $15.99. Minimum wage employees would need to work 74 hours a week year-round to afford a 2 BR unit. Click HERE for the Ohio state fact sheet and county by county data on housing affordability.

Before the coronavirus hit Ohio, only three out of the 10 most common jobs actually paid employees enough to afford a basic two-bedroom apartment, according to a report released Tuesday. Today, many of those workers have been laid off and are now facing eviction.

While more than 1.4 million Ohioans have filed for unemployment insurance since March, nearly half still have not received any benefits. Furthermore, a recent report by the Center for Budget and Policy Priorities estimated 394,000 low-income Ohioans have still not received their federal stimulus checks.

Meanwhile, the U.S. Census Bureau’s most recent Household Pulse Survey estimates nearly 537,000 Ohioans are concerned that they will not be able to pay next month’s rent.

COHHIO Executive Director Bill Faith said mass unemployment among Ohioans who were already struggling to pay the rent has created the very real prospect of a full-blown housing crisis on top of a public health emergency.

COHHIO and NLIHC are urging the U.S. Senate to pass Sen. Sherrod Brown’s (D-Cleveland) proposal to create a $100 billion emergency rental assistance program for workers impacted by the virus-induced recession.

COHHIO is also asking Gov. Mike DeWine to allocate at least $100 million of the state’s federal coronavirus relief funds for emergency rental assistance. Last month 182 businesses, hospitals, and human services organizations signed a letter urging Gov. DeWine to take immediate action to prevent a spike in evictions and homelessness.

AOF Asks Senators to Include Funding for Basic Needs Assistance and Child Care in Next Relief Bill

After the U.S. House passed the latest coronavirus relief package, the HEROES Act in May, the Senate has taken the first part of summer to develop their own stimulus package. The Senate majority is preparing to roll out their latest coronavirus relief proposal as soon as next week as Congress faces growing pressure to act amid a surge of new cases.

AOF and member organizations asked Ohio’s U.S. Senators Rob Portman and Sherrod Brown this week to include provisions of the Pandemic TANF Assistance Act, including the Coronavirus Emergency Assistance Grant Program, and significant funding to the child care industry to help get individuals and families back on their feet.

The health and economic burdens of COVID-19 are falling disproportionately on people of color and people with very low incomes — who faced significant economic and health challenges before the pandemic — and provisions of the new Pandemic TANF Assistance Act would provide financial assistance to many of these families and protection from the negative consequences of previous policies.

The child care industry is at risk of losing nearly half of all slots and substantially more support so families won't struggle to find care as they look to safely return to work. According to our partners at Policy Matters Ohio, without federal action, Ohio could lose 204,000 child care slots. Congress needs to pass legislation with at least $50 billion in federal funds to save child care.

Action Alert: Call your U.S. Senators! Protecting and Sustaining Ohio’s Medicaid Program

To protect health coverage and critical state public services during the public health and economic crises, Congress must substantially increase the share of Medicaid costs paid by the federal government. 

 Congress reconvenes on July 20. Call Senator Brown and Senator Portman to ask them to support:

• An increase of at least 14 percentage points in each state’s FMAP (the share of a state’s Medicaid costs paid for by the federal government);

• Extending the FMAP increase until unemployment goes down to pre-recession levels and state budgets recover; and

• Continuing strong maintenance-of-effort (MOE) protections that prevent cuts to coverage.

The Problem

COVID-19 has created an interlocking health and economic crisis that is affecting people in every corner of our state. Ohio’s Medicaid program is critical to ensuring that Ohioans can get through this recession and continue to get the health care they need—especially as the COVID-19 virus surges.

But Ohio’s Medicaid program, and the overall state budget, is at risk. Ohio faces a $2.1 billion budget shortfall after suffering huge losses of sales and income taxes because stores had to close to slow the spread of the virus and people have less income. At the same time, with more people losing their jobs and health insurance, the need for Medicaid insurance coverage has increased — and this will continue as people move in and out of unemployment during the next 18 months (or more) of economic recovery.

Governor DeWine has already cut Medicaid once to try to close part of the state budget shortfall. Unless Congress provides more aid to state Medicaid programs, there could be more cuts to Medicaid in Ohio—and to other parts of the state budget, like education and public transit—and people could lose health coverage right when they need it most.

The Solution

Governors of both parties are calling for Congress to increase federal funding for state Medicaid programs, in addition to more direct aid to states, cities, and towns to help close budget shortfalls and prevent deep budget cuts that will hurt millions of people.

 Additional federal support for Medicaid will serve multiple purposes:

• It sustains health and economic security for children, people with disabilities, low-income families and seniors;

• It will give our state more flexibility to use state dollars for other needs and prevent cuts to programs such as education, job training, public transit, and public works programs;

• Additional federal funds flowing into the economy will support economic recovery in every county of the state through the wages and salaries of health care workers; and

• It will stabilize the entire health care system and help Ohio avoid harmful cuts to hospitals and providers.

Although Congress took steps to shore up Medicaid in the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, the FMAP increase provided in that bill is not enough and will end whenever the federal government declares the public health emergency over—even though the recession and people’s needs will go on much longer than that.

Ohioans and health care providers need more certainty.  Congress needs to increase the FMAP by at least 14 percentage points for all enrollees for the duration of the recession.

Call or e-mail Senator Brown and Senator Portman and tell them to protect our health care today!

Senator Brown

• Phone: (202) 224-2315 Washington D.C. Office

• E-mail

Senator Portman

• Phone: (202) 224-3353 Washington D.C. Office

• E-mail

Sample email/telephone script:

 As your constituent, I want to thank you for the actions you have taken to support Ohio and the Medicaid program in response to the COVID-19 crisis. As you know, the Families First Coronavirus Response Act included a crucial boost to the Federal Medicaid Assistance Percentage (FMAP) and other important health policies. However, more is needed to truly address this health and economic crisis. 

I am counting on you to take more action to help our state get through this emergency. As Congress negotiates the next COVID-19 federal response bill, I ask you to support increasing the federal Medicaid match rate by at least 14%, with that increase sustained through the economic downturn and tied to unemployment rather than the public health emergency. Additional federal Medicaid funds flowing into the economy will support economic recovery in every county of the state through the wages and salaries of health care workers, stabilize the entire health care system, and help Ohio avoid harmful cuts to hospitals and providers.

Please support Medicaid, as it is a key piece to keeping our economy going and helping our community recover from COVID-19. A strong Medicaid program not only benefits Ohioans most impacted by the coronavirus crisis, but it protects the state budget as well. 

Thank you for your leadership and your commitment to getting Ohio through this crisis.

New Report Explores Ohio Deaths By Suicide, Effects of Coronavirus Pandemic Isolation

Following the Suicide Prevention Plan for Ohio released by Governor Mike DeWine and numerous state partners, a new collaboration has created an analytical deep dive of data into suicide deaths between 2009-2018.

The Mental Health & Addiction Advocacy Coalition (MHAC) in partnership with the Ohio Alliance for Innovation in Population Health (The Alliance) and the Ohio Suicide Prevention Foundation (OSPF), produced Suicide in Ohio: Facts, Figures, and the Future, a report consisting of three installments that examine 2009-2018 Ohio Department of Health (ODH) suicide data across myriad demographics.

Suicide in Ohio: Facts, Figures, and the Future provides readers with insight about deaths by suicide across Ohio, as well as the impact of and community responses to suicide in specific areas of Northeast and Southwest Ohio. The goal of this report is to provide information for policy makers, clinicians, and community leaders, so they will have the knowledge and motivation to take the necessary actions needed to increase a focus on suicide prevention, diminish the number of deaths by suicide, and provide relief for survivors of suicide loss.

The report can also be used to help develop effective responses at the local, state, and federal levels. An effective suicide response must include components like adequate funding at the state and local levels, suicide prevention plans and programming, mental health insurance parity, the training of primary care health professionals, and many more.

Affordable Care Act Faces New Threat in Supreme Court

On Thursday June 25 the Trump administration and 18 state attorneys general, led by Texas, argued in a legal brief filed to the Supreme Court that the entire Affordable Care Act (ACA) should be invalidated. 

The stakes in this case have always been extraordinarily high, but are even more so now, in the midst of a global pandemic and as the economic crisis causes more people to lose health insurance and become eligible for help from the ACA.

ACA repeal was expected to cause 20 million people to lose coverage before the crisis, but millions more would likely lose coverage if the law were struck down during a deep recession, with commensurately larger impacts on access to care, financial security, health outcomes, and racial disparities in coverage and access to care. Striking down the ACA would also impede efforts to end the COVID-19 public health crisis and deal with the fallout.

The case will not be decided until after the elections, likely in spring of 2021, meaning it will hang over campaigns until November. 

Most legal observers think the current makeup of the Supreme Court would rule to uphold the law, especially given that Chief Justice John Roberts has already upheld it in two previous ACA cases, but nothing is ever certain at the high court.

Read more from our partners at Policy Matters Ohio here