1. United States
2. Ohio
3. Letter

Dear Ohio Leaders, I am asking for an immediate investigation into access failures within Ohio Medicaid. Medicaid covers about 3.2 million Ohioans, roughly 27% of the state population. That means about 4 out of every 15 Ohioans depend on this system for health care. Ohio Medicaid cannot just look good on paper. It has to work in real life. Families are being harmed by reimbursement systems, managed care failures, provider network issues, and policies that are leaving people without adequate care. This is especially dangerous for elderly people, disabled people, medically fragile people, people with mental health needs, people in addiction recovery, and families who depend on home health care, medication management, transportation, care coordination, and consistent medical access. When care is delayed or disrupted, people can miss medication, relapse, lose stability, suffer medical crises, end up in emergency rooms, or be discharged back into unsafe situations. These are life and death problems. Ohio has announced billions in Medicaid rate investments, including major 2024 rate increases affecting more than 200,000 providers. If billions of taxpayer dollars are being spent, Ohio residents deserve proof that this money is creating real access to care. The numbers do not make sense. Ohio housing and operating costs have risen sharply over the last decade. A home that cost around $135,000 in 2016 would compare to roughly $262,900 today, about a 95% increase. Rent rising from around $750 to about $1,325 is about a 77% increase. Meanwhile, many Medicaid reimbursement rates have remained flat for years, increased too slowly, or still do not reflect the real cost of staffing, travel, insurance, transportation, administration, and care delivery. If providers cannot afford to participate, Medicaid members lose access. If members lose access, families suffer. Hospitals and emergency rooms absorb the crisis. Workers burn out. Communities lose stability. People who needed support end up in worse situations that cost taxpayers even more. I am asking Ohio leaders to require an independent audit of: Provider network adequacy Reimbursement rates compared to the real cost of care Home health access Mental health and addiction treatment access Transportation failures Medication management delays Managed care plan performance Provider and vendor contract failures Service denials and delays The impact on elderly, disabled, medically fragile, and mentally vulnerable Ohioans Ohio must also evaluate whether the current managed care model is actually serving Medicaid members or creating another layer of bureaucracy. If the model is not delivering real access to care, Ohio leaders should examine stronger state control, stricter contract enforcement, public reporting of plan failures, financial penalties, or moving certain services back to a state-managed model. Private companies should not be allowed to profit from Medicaid contracts while vulnerable Ohioans cannot find care. Adequate care cannot exist only in directories, contracts, press releases, and managed care reports. Ohio Medicaid must work in real life.