Gov. DeWine vetoes price transparency provisions in new budget

In signing the state's biennial budget Thursday morning, DeWine also issued 25 line-item vetoes, most of which were health-care related (Source: “Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine signs state budget bill; nixes ‘price transparency’ measures,” Cleveland Plain Dealer, July 18, 2019).

Among the items he nixed were “price transparency” measures requiring hospitals to provide patients with billing estimates in advance, and “surprise billing” language that required insurers to reimburse out-of-network medical services when performed at an in-network facility.

State lawmakers have pursued these types of reforms for years over objections from state hospitals and other health-care providers.

In his veto message, DeWine wrote he supports the idea of making medical billing more transparent, but said the measures were potentially duplicative of those happening at the federal level.