OCC Advocacy Report | August 2022

Senator Gary Peters (D-MI) becomes 21st Senate TROA Cosponsor!

During July, Senator Gary Peters (D-MI) became the 21st Senate cosponsor of the Treat and
Reduce Obesity Act (TROA) bringing the total House and Senate cosponsors to 168! OCAN
members will continue to meet with members of Congress during the August recess in hopes
of getting TROA added to any end-of-year must-pass legislative packages. Also stay tuned
for more information about OCAN Advocacy Days in September!

Wisconsin Group Insurance Board Punts on AOM State Employee Coverage

During a State of Wisconsin’s Department of Employee Trust Funds (ETF) Group Insurance
Board (GIB) special hearing on June 30th, the GIB voted against providing state employee
coverage for anti-obesity medications (AOMs) for 2023. However, the Board does plan to
devote a significant portion of its November 16th meeting to the issue as it begins its
evaluation process for benefit year 2024. Obesity Care Continuum (OCC) member groups
have been advocating before the ETF and the GIB for the past three years for the state
employee plan to provide coverage for AOMs and robust medical nutrition therapy (MNT).
OCC members will be coordinating advocacy efforts in the coming months to present a strong
case for coverage at the November 16th meeting.