Hot Seat: OICA CEO pushes for child-focused legislation, warns of budget cuts

In this edition of Hot Seat, political analyst Scott Mitchell talks to Joe Dorman, CEO of the Oklahoma Institute for Child Advocacy, about key legislation affecting children and families, including concerns over federal budget cuts and the impact of Dillon’s Law.

OICA: A Voice for Vulnerable Children

The Oklahoma Institute for Child Advocacy (OICA) was founded to represent one of the state’s most vulnerable populations — children. CEO Joe Dorman said the organization was created to ensure a consistent voice for kids at the state Capitol.

“Advocates decided that there needed to be a loud voice outside of government that would go to the Capitol and raise awareness, educate lawmakers with facts and data, but also train on how to be better voices,” said Dorman.

He said all of OICA’s work is aimed at pushing for stronger, smarter policy decisions.

Lawmakers Make Progress, but Concerns Remain

Oklahoma continues to rank in the bottom 10 states for child well-being, according to multiple national studies. While Dorman praised the state Legislature for passing several bills this session, he warned that the budget remains a major concern.

“There’s room for improvement,” he said. “Now, lawmakers have done a great job this session with passing several bills … we’re certainly worried about the budget this year.”

Federal Cuts Could Impact Medicaid and More

The state’s budget situation is closely tied to decisions being made in Washington, D.C., where congressional leaders are negotiating federal spending.

“We have to give them credit for trying to put out a balanced budget, but in my opinion, they are going about it the wrong way, Congress and the Executive Branch,” said Dorman. “They’re wanting to make massive cuts, but it should be more of the scalpel than a chainsaw.”

One major concern is Medicaid. Oklahoma is one of just three states where Medicaid expansion is protected by the state constitution, meaning the Legislature is required to fund it even if federal matching dollars are reduced.

“So any federal cuts that come down by percentage, the legislature will have to look at that,” said Dorman. “They’re still going to have to fund that, but they’re going to have to take money out of other areas of the budget. So right now, it’s roughly a 90-10 split.”

A shift to an 80-20 or 60-40 match could cost the state hundreds of millions of dollars.

“Every percent is $150 million or so, and we're talking about every 10 percent,” he said. “So we're talking easily we could see $500, $600 million.”

Dillon’s Law Aims to Prevent SUDEP Deaths

Dorman also highlighted Dillon’s Law, a bill named after an Oklahoma teen who died from sudden unexpected death from epilepsy, or SUDEP. The bill, supported by the Witten-Newman Foundation and Dillon’s family, includes three key provisions.

“They are doing three different things with this bill,” Dorman said. “They're raising awareness with doctors on how to do early prevention for supporting people with the risk of epilepsy. They're working with the medical officers to look at ways to do autopsies to see if someone did die from SUDEP. And then they're also passing a provision where you can have it marked on your license if you suffer from epilepsy.”

Dorman said that last provision could be especially important for law enforcement responding to a medical emergency involving someone with epilepsy.

Public Encouraged to Track Legislation Online

To stay up to date with Dillon’s Law and other legislation that affects children and families, Dorman encourages Oklahomans to visit https://oica.org.

“We have a tracking list of the bills that impact children and families,” he said. “We also have a newsletter that comes out every Thursday at 2 p.m. It’s free and lets you keep up with what’s happening in the world of child advocacy.”