HB 1167, which decriminalizes the possession of fentanyl test strips, which save lives from overdose, was signed into law. The victory is the result of a multi-year effort by Hoosier Action to build a statewide coalition to destigmatize harm reduction and get those who struggle with substance abuse the help that they need.
On April 1, Hoosier Action hosted a day of action at the Indiana Statehouse in downtown Indianapolis to draw attention to the millions who rely on Medicare and Medicaid in the state, who would be harmed by the $880 million in cuts to health care proposed by Republicans in the U.S. Congress, and by efforts in Indiana to roll back the Healthy Indiana Plan (HIP), which covers more than 754,000 people in the state.
“Medicaid has made it possible to have insulin in other medications needed,” said Hoosier Action member Nancy Garner at the event. “Medicaid has not been an indulgence for me as a means to buy things I do not need. Instead, it has been a necessity in order to live a healthy life.”
Through their efforts, Hoosier Action was able to transform SB2, a package that sought to cap the number of those eligible for HIP and impose work requirements on those eligible, into a law that preserves health care for those currently covered. A day after Hoosier Action’s event at the statehouse, the Ways and Means Committee voted to amend SB2 to address many of the concerns Hoosier Action had raised.
They removed the cap on enrollment, as well as the state’s trigger law that would have cut the HIP program if federal funding drops, and also removed an additional 3-year lifetime enrollment cap. This preserves health care for all 754,000 Hoosiers who are currently covered by the program.
These wins come on the heels of Hoosier Action’s victory last month in striking down HB 1662, a Cicero Institute-drafted bill which would have criminalized homelessness in the state.