In response to the Texas v. United States decision issued by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit, Hoosier Action Executive Director Kate Hess Pace issued the following statement:

“The Medicaid expansion in Indiana under the ACA, called the Healthy Indiana Plan or HIP 2.0, provides vital healthcare coverage for nearly half a million Hoosiers struggling to make ends meet. In the past year, we have worked tirelessly to ensure that HIP 2.0 is not undermined by burdensome and cruel requirements, like the so-called ‘Gateway to Work’ program. We are grateful that this ruling upholds the majority of the ACA, including the Medicaid expansion, but are deeply concerned by any attempt to undermine the ACA and strip Hoosiers of their healthcare. We will continue to fight for HIP 2.0, and to ensure that all Hoosiers can get affordable, quality healthcare.”

For the nearly half a million Hoosiers insured through HIP 2.0, the coverage provided through the ACA has been life-changing, and, in many cases, life-saving. As Hoosier Action leader Eva Bell explains, “Without HIP 2.0, I don’t know that I would be alive today. If I hadn’t had HIP, I would not have gone to the hospital last summer when my stomach started hurting. Turns out my appendix was inflamed and would’ve burst had I waited.”

Ultimately, today’s decision leaves millions of Hoosiers in limbo, whether they are insured through HIP 2.0, have a pre-existing condition, or are a young person still on their parents insurance. If the ACA is ultimately repealed, the consequences would be devastating for Hoosiers.

• 497,000 Hoosiers could lose their health care coverage if the law is declared unconstitutional, it would also:

• End protections for 130 million Americans with pre-existing conditions, including 2,743,100 Hoosiers;

• Increase in the uninsured rate by 65 percent;

• Strip coverage from 17 million people who received it through Medicaid expansion, including over 415,000 Hoosiers enrolled in HIP 2.0;

• Dramatic increases in prescription drug costs for nearly 12 million seniors who rely on Medicare;

• More than 2.3 million young people would be forced to leave their parents’ health plans;

• Insurance companies could go back to charging women 50 percent more than men for the same policy; and

• Rural hospitals would face severely reduced resources just as cost of care increases in those communities.