"Make a Rational Bet"

There are at least two camps in Oklahoma: those who believe the government is not doing enough to prevent the spread of coronavirus and those who believe the government is overreacting to the pandemic. Regardless of which camp you are in, the truth is we can see clearly the nations and states that have adopted stricter sets of prevention measures have fared better than those with more relaxed measures. I generally look for the middle-ground on issues, but the middle ground for this pandemic looks to be only marginally better than doing nothing at all.

Blaise Pascal was a French philosopher, mathematician, and physicist who lived in the 1600s and is famous, in part, due to an argument called “Pascal’s wager.” Pascal argues a rational person should not only live as though God exists, but also seek to believe in God. If God does not actually exist, a person will experience only a few losses like worldly pleasures and luxury, etc. If God does exist, however, that person stands to receive infinite gains (Heaven) and avoids infinite losses (an eternity in Hell). Basically, Pascal argues, bet on God’s existence and one stands to gain much more than that person will lose.

I bring this up not to debate the religious and theological nature of this wager or to make light of it (and, yes, I believe God exists). Pascal’s wager is a beneficial illustration for us to begin to navigate our stances in regard to the coronavirus pandemic. We have it much easier than Pascal, though, because we know the coronavirus pandemic actually exists. If we wager the coronavirus pandemic is a real threat and do things to decrease exposure, we will be much better off in the end. If we do not believe this pandemic is a real threat and live our lives as normal, we are flirting with disaster.

The conundrum facing the Governor and other leaders is how do we contain the virus without submarining the economy even more? We know other countries like South Korea have virtually halted the spread of coronavirus and with comparatively less impact to their economy by banning travel, following strict social distancing guidelines, swift testing, quarantining those tested, following up on positive tests and tracing those the infected have exposed, and then quarantining those potentially infected people. We have been at a disadvantage because tests have been scarce, but fortunately, tests are becoming more available in our state with both OU and OSU now testing in their labs.

It is time to screen widely. I was relieved when Oklahoma Secretary of Health Jerome Loughridge mentioned a partnership with Google yesterday in the Governor’s press briefing where Oklahomans can self-report their symptoms via a link on their phones. This would give the state the ability to see in real-time who are presenting symptoms, locate the possible infected people, instruct them to stay home, and get a test to them quickly.

This will be incredibly helpful to all of us, BUT ONLY AS LONG AS OKLAHOMANS FOLLOW QUARANTINE AND SOCIAL DISTANCING GUIDELINES. We are in this boat together and we need to protect each other. Be a good neighbor, take Pascal’s wager and bet on the pandemic being real and severe. Then, follow the CDC guidelines by self-quarantining when you feel bad, social distancing when you feel fine, washing your hands often, and observing coughing and sneezing etiquette. How we react to this pandemic on a personal level either will pay large dividends to the state and its citizens or incur large losses.
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I fully expect local and state leaders will soon be calling for more extensive and more limiting actions. Until then, be rational, wise and responsible. Be willing to do everything you can to prevent the spread of coronavirus.

The call of the Chair

The Oklahoma Legislature adjourned to “the call of the Chair” on Tuesday, March 17. This means the legislature will be resuming session at some point in the near future, but not this week. Amid all of the uncertainty with the coronavirus pandemic and the oil power play from the Russians and Saudis, your state legislature must focus on what it is constitutionally required to do—and that is to pass a budget.

The state cannot spend more money than it has, which is a stark contrast to our federal government that habitually borrows money for deficit spending. Our state constitution requires a balanced budget each year, and rightly so. If you have been keeping up with the price of oil and gas drop and watching the stock market fall, you can imagine how tough it is to predict how much money the state will have next year—yet a budget must be set.

Generally, budget negotiations between the House, Senate, and Governor start to really heat up in May, but we started in earnest around two weeks ago. With the uncertainty created by the coronavirus pandemic, we have no idea when the legislature will be able to meet again. Solidifying the budget early is crucial and it is the right thing to do. All parties have been working together well and we are closing in on a budget to get us through these tough times ahead.

I encourage all of you to take the coronavirus pandemic seriously and be vigilant. Area doctors report a number of tests from our district are still pending results. Our vigilance now will have a direct effect on how many people in our district are infected later. The reason for “social distancing” is to keep the numbers of infections contained so our hospitals are not overwhelmed. I realize the ideas of quarantine and not congregating in groups of 10 or more are an affront to our concepts of liberty and freedom, but sometimes we need to act in others’ interests instead of our own.

During this uncertain time, it is important to be vigilant, but not afraid. Seek ways to serve others and support local businesses. Be intentional about helping others. You need it and others need it, too! God bless you all.

House Committee Deadline Passes

​Our first major deadline passed this week in the Legislature. All bills had to pass in committees in their legislative chamber of origin by Feb. 27 in order to advance.

Deadline weeks are brutal. We heard hundreds of bills in committee this week. I’m thankful that all of my bills passed committee, especially my bill that would end surprise medical billing. This procedure happens when an insured goes in for what they believe is a covered medical procedure only to be surprised by a medical bill from an out-of-network health care provider. My bill would require the insurance companies and the medical providers to come up with a payment solution and leave the patient out of the middle. Having this bill advance out of committee means I can bring the final product to the floor to be voted on by the entire membership of the House.

In total, the House passed 469 House Bills, one House Joint Resolution and one Senate Bill in committees. We’ve passed 26 House Bills or House Joint Resolutions and two House Concurrent Resolutions on the House floor so far and concurred on Senate amendments on one bill carried forward from last year. This is out of 1,381 house bills filed for this session.

Because this is the second session of the 57th Legislature, we were able to carry forward bills that didn’t advance all the way through the legislative process last year. We had 859 House bills or resolutions carried forward, some of which may still be considered.

The next two weeks will be very busy as we now have until March 12 to hear all House bills in the House. Then we will receive Senate bills while they consider bills from our chamber.

On Thursday, this week, I was the presiding officer over the House. This is always an exciting job as it gives me experience at running the speaker’s chair. The House chamber has a set of rules I must not only know but also enforce. The most common action I take is calling the House into order. I can’t tell you how many times I am prompted to call the House to order and ask members to quiet down and focus them on the business being presented. Many members like to use their time on the floor to catch up with other members to discuss various pieces of legislation and I do not blame them for this. With 101 members, this makes for a good deal of noise in the chamber and that noise level must be controlled out of respect to those presenting bills, those questioning bills and those in the gallery and on the floor listening to the bills.

Also this week, I was asked to present a speaker’s bill on the floor that will give doctors who agree to practice medicine in rural and underserved areas a tax credit of up to $25,000 per year. This is an attempt to help us attract more physicians to our rural areas where they are much needed.

We also continue to work with the governor’s office on his Medicaid expansion plan. I’m hoping something will be forthcoming on that front in the near future. Oklahomans want to know the details.

In the meantime, if I can be of any assistance, please feel free to contact me at marcus.mcentire@okhouse.gov or (405) 557-7327.

God Bless!
Marcus

Successes and Disappointment

We started this legislative session with lawmakers in the House and Senate filing almost 2,400 bills or joint resolutions for consideration. Session ended with 519 of those measures becoming law. This is common. Creating bills is fairly simple, but passing bills is difficult. The system is designed with built-in, bill-killing hurdles.

I’d like to report to you some of the pieces of legislation I was able to pass this session that will have a positive impact on Oklahomans.

One is the nursing home pay-for-performance plan, which is designed to improve quality of care and outcomes for the residents of our state’s nursing homes. I authored House Bill 1902 and was the principal House author of Senate Bill 280, which is the version that eventually passed and was signed into law. Sen. Frank Simpson and I worked closely together on both bills with nursing home administrators, AARP Oklahoma, nurses and other senior advocacy groups to enhance funding, increase the numbers of caregiving personnel at nursing homes and helped negotiate a pay-for-performance model designed to reward nursing homes for better health outcomes.

I've said over and over that we must do better as a state for elder healthcare services, and this is a measurable plan for achieving that goal.

Another personal highlight was pharmacy benefit managers’ (PBM) regulation, which Gov. Kevin Stitt recently signed into law via House Bill 2632. This bill will regulate PBMs, increase competition and allow people to choose which pharmacy they want to use while still getting the same prescription discounts as the big, company-owned pharmacies. Special thanks to Sen. Greg McCortney and Rep. Jon Echols for their help in getting this bill through the maze of legislative hurdles it faced. It wasn’t easy, but it was worth the fight.

Extending the sunset on the Supplemental Hospital Offset Payment Program (SHOPP) fee until 2025 was another accomplishment. This allows Oklahoma hospitals to provide additional money to the Oklahoma Health Care Authority, which manages the state’s Medicaid program. These fees allow us to draw down matching federal dollars equal to approximately the federal upper payment limit. This increases state Medicaid dollars without obligating the state to future payments if the federal government stops paying its share.

A glaring disappointment this session was the failure of House Bill 1056. This measure would have ensured domestic assault and battery be defined as a violent crime and offenders found guilty of this charge would have to serve at least 85 percent of their sentence. Crimes against spouses or children are particularly heinous. I will not give up my efforts to protect the vulnerable. To say I am disappointed this bill stalled in the legislative process is an understatement. The bill sailed through the House with only one nay vote but never made it to a committee hearing in the Senate. I will continue to work on this.

Remember that even though session has ended, I am still available by email, and my Capitol office phone will be answered. Please feel free to reach out to me with your questions or concerns at marcus.mcentire@okhouse.gov or (405) 557-7327.

Have a safe summer.

God Bless!
Marcus

Busy Legislative Session Adjourns

I am grateful for this year's session. The Legislature worked together tirelessly to create good policies and a balanced budget, and we completed the session a week early. I am proud of the work I was able to get done this session. I realize I could have done none of it without the trust and support of my colleagues. The governor has signed 23 House and Senate bills on which I was the principal author this year. Two more are on his desk, and he is likely to sign both of them.

It was a very busy and productive session. The bills I authored cover a combination of healthcare and business reform as well as government modernization efforts to bring our laws into the current century to meet the needs and wishes of Oklahoma residents.

The healthcare reforms I authored give me the most pride because they have the potential to affect Oklahomans' quality of life for years to come. As the chair of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Health, I had the opportunity to offer several ideas and changes that will result in long-term budget restructuring and will help us meet the needs of more Oklahomans going forward.

For example, I was able to increase our Federal Medicaid Assistance Percentage (FMAP) match to allow for a 5 percent provider rate increase in the Fiscal Year 2020, which in turn will increase funding support to hospitals, health clinics, health providers and nursing homes. We will put more funding into provider rates next year to bring more certainty and confidence for Oklahomans who use these services. I also passed policy for pay-for-performance legislation to increase the quality of care for our nursing home residents.

Other lawmakers have pointed out that by far the wisest move I made for this budget is the $29 million saved to a new rate preservation fund to preserve Medicaid provider rates when the federal government’s 3-year rolling average results in a rate decline. When that $29 million is matched by federal dollars in the future it should net the state over $80 million.

The budget provides $62.8 million for Graduate Medical Education programs to support physician training for those who will serve in rural hospitals. The budget includes $10 million to decrease the Developmental Disability Services waiting list and increase provider rates, which will help some of the most vulnerable in our society. Finally, a $4.6 million increase is designated for immunizations and to staff county health departments throughout the state.

This budget also prioritizes education, giving preK-12 an additional $158 million this year over last to include a teacher pay raise and $74.3 million additional funding to classrooms. We also increased funding to CareerTechs and higher education. Transportation, public safety, and many other areas of government services are increased as well.

Perhaps best of all, we were able to save money in this budget. We set aside $200 million that will bring our state savings to about $1 billion by the end of this fiscal year. We plan to continue this until we have enough money to ensure we will not have to cut core services in the next economic downturn. We saved while increasing funding for core areas of state government by about 6 percent.

I ran on a platform of bringing sound budgeting principles to the Capitol, and this legislative session I was able to help advance those. I’m proud to be keeping my promises to those who elected me.

Now that session has ended, I will be at the Capitol less and the district more. But, I will still be available by email, and my Capitol office phone will be answered. Please feel free to reach out to me with your questions or concerns at marcus.mcentire@okhouse.gov or (405) 557-7327.

Have a safe summer.

God Bless!
Marcus