Garcia Wilburn comments on passage of federal bill stripping health care from thousands of Hoosiers

Upon the U.S. House of Representative's vote to send the "Big Ugly Betrayal" bill to President Trump's desk for signing, State Rep. Victoria Garcia Wilburn (D-Fishers) issued the following statement in response:

"As a member of the Indiana House Committee on Public Health and a health professional, I understand the critical role that Indiana's Medicaid programs, including Hoosier Healthwise, the Healthy Indiana Plan (HIP) and home-based waiver services play in keeping Hoosier families, children and seniors healthy. Thanks to the 'Big Ugly Betrayal' and other federal health care policy changes, 17 million Americans will become uninsured over the next decade, including an estimated 267,996 Hoosiers.

"Let's be perfectly clear: The vast majority of Medicaid recipients work and contribute to their communities. Most others in the program are disabled, elderly, blind or are simply children. The administrative burden that will be placed on the State of Indiana to execute these cuts will slow down eligible Hoosiers' ability to receive care in a timely manner. This will exacerbate existing, treatable conditions and ultimately drive up the cost of care for the state without improving outcomes. Hoosier families struggling to get by want a helping hand, not a handout. These cuts pull the rug out from under them.

"Additionally, 12 rural Indiana hospitals have been identified as potentially closing because of the Medicaid cuts in this bill. In a year when Indiana has already significantly cut its successful county-based public health program, I have grave concerns for the direction our state's health statistics will head if more rural health care deserts are created.

"I have been vocal all year about the danger in sweeping changes to our hospitals, our Medicaid and the lack of patient-centered decision-making in the drastic changes to how we provide care to those with autism. These federal changes will undoubtedly hurt all Hoosiers, irrespective of insurance type. The state will be left to pick up the pieces and once again 'do more with less.'"