A medical
epidemic is one of the worst scenarios a hospital can face – when a significant
portion of the population is suddenly struck with a life-threatening illness.
Indiana is
facing the equivalent of an epidemic that threatens the health of our people:
nearly 15 percent of our state’s population is without health insurance.
860,000 Hoosiers are at risk from a medical and economic disaster because they
lack health insurance.
But, we can
do something now to prevent this epidemic – if the current negotiations between
Governor Mike Pence and U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Sebelius on
coverage expansion are successful.
Using $10.5
billion in matching funds from the federal government, Indiana can expand
coverage to 300,000 uninsured Indiana residents who have fallen into the
dreaded coverage gap. They are the hard-working Hoosiers who earn too much
income to qualify for traditional Medicaid, but not enough to qualify for tax
credits and subsidies through the Health Insurance Marketplace.
When more
Hoosiers have access to health care, we all benefit from lower premiums. And hospitals
can protect existing high-paying jobs, as well as create new ones to serve a
growing market of health care consumers.
Twenty-six
other states have already chosen to expand coverage, including those bordering
Indiana – Michigan, Ohio, Kentucky and Illinois. We support doing this the
Hoosier way, using a responsible and fiscally sound design based on the successful
Healthy Indiana Plan, which currently provides health care benefits for 40,000
enrollees.
How would we
pay for such an expansion? We already are through our federal tax dollars. But,
by agreeing to expand coverage, we can bring those dollars back to Indiana,
funding coverage for our own residents. As a result, the average family would
save as much as $677 in annual premiums.
Businesses
would save substantial monies as well. According to a recent report by Jackson
Hewitt Tax Service, large employers may be required to pay higher federal tax
penalties in states that choose not to expand coverage – as high as $34 million
here in Indiana. On the other hand, if the plan to provide greater health care coverage
is approved, employers can avoid such financial burdens, better predict health
insurance expenses and enjoy higher productivity from a healthier workforce – all
factors that contribute to their bottom line.
Without
coverage expansion, hospitals are bracing for dire times. Already strapped with
providing $3 billion in uncompensated care for the uninsured every year, Indiana’s
failure to expand coverage threatens the very survival of many hospitals,
especially safety-net hospitals that serve patients in urban and rural and
areas.
Closing hospitals
or cutting back on services would also be disastrous for the economic health of
communities as well where hospitals are one of the largest employers in many
areas. Hospitals employ more than 120,000 Hoosier workers and generate more
than $33 billion in state economic activity.
Clearly, the
need to expand coverage in Indiana is great and the urgency is real for the
300,000 Hoosiers who deserve access to quality health care. Indiana Hospital
Association is optimistic about the progress achieved thus far between Governor
Pence and Secretary Sebelius on this important issue.
By responsibly
expanding coverage to the uninsured, everyone benefits and Indiana can become a
healthier, better place for all of us to live and work.
For more information about expanding
health care coverage in Indiana, visit ExpandINCoverage.org.
Douglas J.
Leonard, FACHE
President
Indiana Hospital Association
