American Rescue Plan
Time is running out. Get covered by January 15.
If you don’t have health insurance — or just want to explore your options — go to healthcare.gov on or before Jan. 15 to get covered with affordable health insurance now. Having and keeping good quality affordable health care is personal for me. The Affordable Care Act saved my life. In 2017, I walked into a doctor’s […]
Gov. DeWine signs multibillion-dollar funding bill
Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine has signed a measure passed late in the previous session which appropriates nearly $6 billion in federal funds from the American Rescue Plan Act. The governor declined to issue any line-item vetoes despite calls to do so, particularly from affordable housing advocates. Friday morning DeWine acknowledged “no legislation is perfect,” but […]
Two communities find a cure for medical debt: pandemic stimulus funds
Local governments in Ohio and Illinois are using American Rescue Plan Act money to relieve residents struggling with medical debt by partnering with an organization that buys debt and wipes the slate clean for debtors. It’s a strategy advocates say could be duplicated across the country to help erase a multibillion-dollar problem. On Nov. 9, […]
Studies show gains against childhood hunger were lost after child tax credit ended
An article in the Journal of the American Medical Association in October confirmed previous research that food insecurity increased substantially after the expiration of federal monthly advanced child tax credits on Jan. 15, 2022. The study looked at the period between January and July of this year in a series of national surveys, and found […]
Ohio, other states sitting on huge piles of money, new report says
Ohio has enough in its rainy day fund to operate the state government for 35 days on that money and nothing else. If you factor in the money it has in other unexpended balances, the number of days grows to 73, according to a report released last week by the Pew Charitable Trusts. It’s part […]
DeWine’s hypocrisy on American Rescue Plan dollars as garish as it gets
This is nothing new. Supposedly anti-“Big Government” state leaders slam D.C. politicians for “reckless spending” when D.C. gets things done on health care, education, infrastructure, the environment, stimulus, jobs, the economy. Then those state politicians turn right around and allocate billions in new funding, installing new federally funded programs and initiatives in their states. Then […]
“We’re desperately worried about food.” For Ohio foodbanks, a bad situation gets worse.
Ohioans have seen some respite from high fuel costs in recent months. But those who provide food to millions of poor people in the state say their situation is only deteriorating. Global supply-chain problems, labor shortages, the coronavirus pandemic, climate change and other mega-trends are all combining to make them worry for the first time that they just won't have enough food for everybody who needs it, Lisa Hamler-Fugitt, executive director of the Ohio Association of Foodbanks, said on Monday.
Groups introduce tracker for Ohio’s COVID funds and suggestions for remaining dollars
Researchers with the Ohio Poverty Law Center and Advocates for Ohio’s Future have built an online tool to track how state and local governments are spending COVID relief dollars. They also have a few ideas for the nearly $2 billion Ohio has left over. Last year’s American Rescue Plan Act, ARPA, sent more than $10 […]
Unions rally for COVID hazard pay after arbitrator sides with the state
On the Ohio Statehouse steps Friday, labor unions rallied for hazard pay after an arbitrator denied the additional wages last month. “Respect your employees. Pay them,” OCSEA president Chris Mabe said. “We held up our end of the bargain. Now it’s time for you to hold up yours.” Mabe’s organization, the Ohio Civil Service Employees […]
Four states win federal grants to expand affordable high-speed internet
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Treasury Department on Tuesday announced the first state awards will go to Virginia, Louisiana, New Hampshire and West Virginia in a massive federal effort to bring affordable, high-speed internet to all American homes and businesses. Projects in the four states are the first to receive funding as part of a $10 billion […]
Whaley promises inflation ‘rebate’ checks if elected
Democratic governor nominee Nan Whaley is promising $350 checks to help Ohioans manage the rising cost of gas, groceries and other essentials. But with some economists pointing to federal stimulus as one of the drivers of inflation, her plan may not sit well with them. Whaley’s plan would take the $2.68 billion in American Rescue […]
Biden administration announces boost for rural health care in midterm election push
As the midterm election season ramps up, the Biden administration wants rural Americans to know it’ll be spending a lot of money to improve health care in rural areas. It has tasked Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack with delivering the message that the COVID-19 pandemic exposed long-standing problems with health care infrastructure in remote parts of […]