Medicaid expansion benefits hundreds of thousands
Assessment shows program stabilizes employment, families and health system “Governor Kasich made a smart choice in expanding Medicaid in 2014, allowing hundreds of thousands to secure health care and lead healthier, more productive lives,” said Wendy Patton, Senior Project Director at Policy Matters Ohio, in response to a Kasich Administration evaluation of the program released […]
Rollback of fuel economy standards will hurt Ohio consumers
Columbus, Ohio – The Environmental Protection Agency and National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration yesterday proposed weakening fuel efficiency standards for 2021-2026 models of cars and light trucks. The agencies also blocked states’ rights to adopt their own standards to protect their citizens. Fuel economy standards have saved Ohio households $1.2 billion—if kept in place, […]
Ohio’s low-wage employers provide health benefits to less than 1 in 5 of their employees
Because of problems with America’s employment-based approach to health insurance, 640,000 Ohioans were uninsured in 2016. More than 60% of them were employed, but without employer-supported coverage. Four in 10 uninsured adults in Ohio worked full time. Employers limit eligibility by restricting employees to part-time or temporary status and implementing waiting periods for coverage. They […]
Predatory contracts exploit home buyers
Land installment contracts, once a tool for speculators to exploit black families barred from access to traditional mortgages, have made a resurgence in Ohio since the foreclosure crisis. Under these arrangements, buyers accrue zero equity in their home until the entire cost, plus interest, taxes, leins, and fees, are paid in full. Buyers who fail […]
Ohio incomes are staggeringly unequal, nation’s are even worse
A new report finds that Ohio’s wealthiest 1 percent made on average 18.6 times more than the average income of all other Ohio families in 2015, before taxes and transfers. The national report, by economists Estelle Sommeiller and Mark Price, was published by the Economic Policy Institute. Using Sommeiller and Price’s data, Policy Matters Ohio […]
U.S. Supreme Court overturns outdated sales-tax rule
Ohio should take steps so on-line merchants collect taxes that are due Note: This replaces a June 21, 2018 version of this release. This version is updated to reflect our improved understanding of changes needed to current Ohio law. In a long overdue and long-awaited decision (South Dakota v. Wayfair), the U.S. Supreme Court last […]
New health care repeal plan much like the old
Axes protection for pre-existing conditions, turns Medicaid expansion and marketplace subsidies into block grant A new Policy Matters Ohio policy brief finds more than 830,000 Ohioans are at risk of losing health coverage under a new plan for repealing the Affordable Care Act (ACA) that a group of conservative think tanks are floating again to […]
Budget surplus should be invested in Ohio
Transfer of $657 million into rainy day fund ignores needs of state residents The Kasich administration today transferred $657 million into the state’s rainy day fund. But instead of banking this money, the state should have used it to make lives better today for millions of Ohioans by strengthening public libraries, expanding bus service, extending […]
New ACA repeal plan would harm Ohioans
A new plan to repeal the Affordable Care Act (ACA) would have devastating effects on health insurance coverage and put a staggering number of Ohioans’ health and financial security at risk. This new plan, unveiled at the conservative Hoover Institution in Washington D.C., would end the Medicaid expansion that insures 650,000 in Ohio and eliminate […]
Cynthia Connolly honored with Rising Activist award
Cynthia Connolly accepts Community Shares’ 2018 Rising Activist award Policy Matters Ohio development director Cynthia Connolly received the 2018 Rising Activist award from Greater Cleveland Community Shares. The award honors an individual under the age of 40 whose social justice activism sets a strong example for young adult leadership and engagement in the social justice […]
Supreme Court sides with special interests over working people
Janus decision further weakens collective bargaining Today, the U.S. Supreme Court made it more difficult for 17.3 million working people to join together to seek safer working conditions, fair pay, and family-sustaining benefits. The court has undercut long-standing law in 22 states, including Ohio, that requires state and local government employees who benefit from a […]
Overhaul: A plan to rebalance Ohio’s income tax
New Policy Matters Ohio tax plan taps the affluent to invest in Ohio Policy Matters Ohio today proposed a plan to overhaul Ohio’s income tax to raise more revenues for schools, treatment of Ohioans caught in the drug epidemic, and other key needs. “Dramatic tax cuts since 2005 have weakened Ohio and created an upside-down […]