On the new episode of Prognosis Ohio, Dan Skinner talks with State Representative and House Assistant Minority Leader Dontavius Jarrells about how his background shapes his work as a legislator, bills he has introduced and supported, and his health priorities in the Ohio Statehouse during the ongoing budget process.
After surviving lead poisoning as a child, Rep. Jarrells introduced H.B. 587, laying the groundwork for securing a historic $150 million in ARPA funding for lead poison prevention. This money will fund the remediation and mitigation of lead out of homes, but it does not address lead in pipes.
Rep. Jarrells also authored H.B. 453, which established the “Recovery is Beautiful” specialty license plate and demonstrated recovery-oriented systems of care that puts recovery at the forefront of policy.
H.B. 281, which was signed into law, removed derogatory language from Ohio Revised Code. This bill was the most comprehensive change in terms of terminology since the Ohio Revised Code was rewritten and issued into law in 1974.
Read more about Rep. Jarrells on his website and the Ohio House website.
NAME CHECKS / RELATED EPISODES
- Rep. Jarrells gives a special shout out to the Cleveland Clinic.
- Dan mentions some research he’s conducted on hospital-community relations, including the Cleveland Clinic, and you can preorder his book here.
- Rep. Jarrells used to work on health equity at the Ohio Department of Mental Health & Addiction Services
- Rep. Jarrells acknowledges his colleague, Rep. Bride Rose Sweeney, who is the ranking member on the Finance Committee
- Check out the previous episode about the state budget with Kelsey Bergfeld and Tara Britton to hear more about the Public Health Emergency “Unwind” and SNAP benefits
PRODUCTION
Hosted and produced by Dan Skinner. Engineering support provided by Mike Foley at WCBE. Copywriting and production support by Angela Lin. Prognosis Ohio is a member of the WCBE Podcast Experience and the Health Podcast Network. Prognosis Ohio is a production of Prognosis Ohio, LLC.