A Region lawmaker wants to make sure hospitals serving low-income residents don't see a gap in their funding. State Senator Eddie Melton (D-Gary) said hospitals are reporting an impact to the payments they get from the federal Disproportionate Share Hospital program.
"Those are the hospitals that serve low-income individuals, low-income communities, and it's dire that they receive these funds from the federal government to ensure sustainability," Melton explained.
While federal lawmakers work to resolve the issue, Senate Bill 433 would provide $20 million in stopgap funding from the state. The bill also calls on the state Medicaid agency to study longer-term solutions, to make sure hospitals can keep operating if there are future impacts to federal funding.
Melton said health care is a major focus this legislative session, with a number of bills being considered. "We know that Indiana ranks 45th per capita in state health funding, and this contributes to the wide disparities that we see in communities like I represent," Melton noted.
But he also worries that legislation designed to control rising health care costs could end up hurting local hospitals. "I think it could be very detrimental to communities like Gary, like East Chicago, and when we've just come off the heels of St. Margaret's closing in Hammond," Melton said.
A financial analysis shared by the Indiana Hospital Association this week found that hospitals lost money in 2022 and had some of their "worst financial performance since the start of the pandemic."
