Chair anticipates steep timeline for DD early intervention bill

A sponsor and committee chair said she is looking to continue the conversation on an early intervention mandate after the election.

Following sponsor testimony in the House Children & Human Services Committee meeting Tuesday, Rep. Andrea White said she anticipates more robust conversations surrounding the proposed mandate (
HB 939 after lawmakers return from summer recess.

“We are planting seeds, investing time and education into what we need to do to help support our county boards of DD and our children and our families," the Kettering Republican said.

The bill would require county developmental disability boards to provide core early intervention services and the state to begin paying for at least half the cost, an effort White is spearheading with joint sponsor Rep. Mike Odioso, R-Cincinnati.

During sponsor testimony, Odioso said he has personal experience seeing the program's positive impact on his daughter, who was diagnosed with autism.

“Upon review, looking back at my wife and I's lived experience, those early years were so critically important to her ability to function at her least restrictive environment,” he said.

White also urged the committee to support the bill, saying the 88 county boards serve more than “117,000 people with developmental disabilities across the state.”

“They could not recruit people because the pay was so low,” she said.

White also compared the situation to the state's investment in Medicaid reimbursement.

“We made a significant investment, increasing that rate in Medicaid reimbursement by 38% so that they could start providing competitive wages, and it works. Guess what? They got more workers into the system,” she said.

She also suggested that the investment could save the state money in the future, which Rep. Crystal Lett, D-Columbus, supported. Lett said the occupational therapy her son received from the early intervention services saved what “would have been Medicaid dollars.”

“I have seen how much cost savings happen just with my child alone — let alone you go into physical therapy, and the other therapies provided. And I think the cost absolutely will pay for themselves,” Lett said.

Committee members from both sides of the aisle asked about funding sources and how to ensure its sustainability.

“I think it's absolutely crucial to our future, but I would certainly want to make sure that if we start early intervention services, they have to follow through,” Rep. Karen Brownlee, D-Cincinnati, said. “They can't just cut off when the child is two and every other GA.”

White acknowledged it will cost the state money, but said, “It’s high time for us to look at what we are funding that we shouldn't be. That’s one of those areas. We are getting cost analysis to be able to provide that to the committee.

“We could start there and look at the budget we're spending and see how we might be able to help with money in different pockets,” White said.

Rep. Tracy Richardson, R-Marysville, raised similar concerns as Brownlee, saying the financials raise red flags for her.

“We're looking to rob Peter to pay Paul potentially with it,” she said. “I really appreciate the work you're trying to do...but I do think the approach of funding has to be measured and targeted.”

After the meeting, White said she would implement the plan as soon as possible if she could but acknowledged, given the nature of the bill, dialogue is necessary.

“Obviously, this is a money bill, so we're going to be looking at this next year because of the operating budget,” she said.