Buckeye Reporter

This week, Chris Ferruso, the Ohio State Director for the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB), addressed the Ohio Senate Insurance Committee regarding the proposed Biomarker Testing Mandate. During his testimony, he articulated the concerns of small business owners about House Bill 24, which seeks to mandate biomarker testing coverage for various health plans, including private-sector fully insured health, public employee benefit, and Medicaid plans.

The primary concern for small business owners, as outlined by Ferruso, is the financial burden imposed by this mandate, adding to the already costly and stringent business regulations. Health insurance costs have consistently been identified as a major issue for small businesses across the United States since 1986.

Ferruso remarked, “We want to acknowledge that Rep. Andrea White has been very willing to discuss ideas on how to alleviate our issues with House Bill 24. We are immensely appreciative of her willingness to try and address our concerns."

He noted one approach aimed at addressing cost concerns through "the addition of uncodified language that speaks to the intent of the General Assembly to not create a landscape that allows for substantially increased pricing." Despite this, he expressed that "this does not completely mitigate one lingering concern: the costs of future tests."

In offering recommendations to the committee, NFIB suggested examining Ohio Revised Code 3923.52 (D)(2), which concerns reimbursement for mammography screenings, as a potential model to curb escalating costs associated with biomarker tests.

Ferruso concluded his testimony by acknowledging the health benefits of early issue identification and treatment. He stated, “We recognize the long-term health benefits of identifying issues early and getting patients the appropriate treatment. Our members want the best health outcomes for their employees. However, we believe it is appropriate to ensure that we do not create a landscape where biomarker tests become prohibitively expensive when government has mandated coverage.”