WFHB Bloomington Community Radio
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A source of national controversy and the impetus behind the October shutdown of the federal government, the ACA produced two big issues in Indiana. The creation of the 29-hour work week allowed employers to avoid providing health care benefits to part-time workers, and Indiana lawmakers refused to create an Indiana insurance exchange, rejected Federal Medicaid expansion monies, and chose to seek approval for the revamped Healthy Indiana Plan system as an alternative. As 2013 started, businesses, schools, and local governments began looking at ways to implement the requirements of the ACA, slated to go into effect at the beginning of 2014. As early as January, administrators were looking at ways to cut employee hours in order to avoid providing health insurance. Without employer coverage, many of these workers turned to the state, where Mike Pence’s refusal to create a state insurance exchange or to take part in ACA Medicaid expansion is expected to leave at least 400,000 people in poverty without the ability to get insurance even under an expanded Healthy Indiana Plan.
