The conclusion of the budget process for fiscal year (FY) 2026 and 2027 has made notable expenditures across Ohio departments and agencies. House Bill 96 of the 136th General Assembly (GA) provides $44.42 billion of federal and state appropriation to the General Revenue Fund (GRF) in FY 2026, and $46.08 billion for FY 2027. State GRF appropriations amount to $29.84 billion in FY 2026 and $30.72 billion in FY 2027. There is a grand total of $99.53 billion for FY 2026 and $101.16 billion in FY 2027 across all funds. This provides an overview of spending in the major health and human services agencies and focuses on the major programmatic changes in this budget.
The Ohio Department of Aging (ODA) was appropriated $127,930,872 for FY 2026 and $131,571,109 for FY 2027.
Most of the funds are from federal at 66.6 percent, followed by 20.2 percent from GRF, and 13.2 percent from the Dedicated Purpose Fund. Overall, the agency is getting a decrease in funding compared to FY 2025 when they were allocated $169,984,281. Between FY 2025 and FY 2026, there was a decrease by 24.7 percent, however, there will be an increase from FY 2026 to FY 2027 at 2.9 percent.
Department of Aging
Long-term services and supports (LTSS) and PACE
As mentioned in our previous article, long-term care supports line items are funds to cover administrative expenses associated with PACE, PASSPORT, and Assisted Living. Throughout the budget process, the long-term care budget (federal) line item remained the same at $7,462,626 for FY 2026 and $7,979,625 for FY 2027. However, the Senate reduced the amount of funds for the state share of the long-term care budget for FY 2027 to $5,399,477.
Overall, the total funding for long-term care support increased by 22.2 percent from FY 2025 to FY 2026.
There will be another five percent increase for the total funding of long-term care support from FY 2026 to FY 2027. So, what does this mean for PACE?
ODA will still be able to issue an RFP for an organization to become a PACE center in underserved counties. PACE services were offered in Cuyahoga, Franklin, Lorain, and Summit Counties as of August 2025. In 2026, PACE services will extend to Ashtabula, Hamilton, Lucas, Mahoning, Montgomery, and Trumbull counties. A presumptive eligibility provision was added during the budget process. However, if the applicant is later determined to be ineligible for PACE, then the PACE organization that conducted presumptive eligibility determination must cover the costs of PACE services offered to the individual during the presumptive eligibility period.
Personal Needs Allowance
There will be an increase in the personal needs allowance (PNA) for older adults living in nursing facilities. According to the American Council on Aging, a PNA is the amount of money a Medicaid recipient in a nursing care facility can keep for their personal income per month. A PNA pays for a resident’s personal expenses that are not covered by Medicaid such as vitamins, clothing, magazines, and haircuts.
Originally a Medicaid recipient obtained 50 dollars’ worth of PNA as an individual, and 100 dollars per couple. Governor Mike DeWine vetoed only the specific language that establishes the minimum amounts. Hence, the legislative language in the state budget explains that “…the monthly personal needs allowance shall be not less than seventy-five dollars for an individual resident and not less than one hundred fifty dollars for a married couple if both spouses are residents of a nursing facility and their incomes are considered available to each other in determining eligibility.”
Governor DeWine’s veto message exclaims that ODM will work on the increase through their administrative rulemaking authority. ODM offered a comment period from September 10, 2025, to September 17, 2025. The rule is currently under review.
Read the series, analysis by individual agency
Department of Behavioral Health
Department of Job and Family Services
Department of Children and Youth
