Episode 88: Medicaid Cuts and the Hoosiers They Hurt
Guest: Jennifer David, BCBA - Disability Advocate
https://www.youtube.com/@DisabilityIndiana
Welcome to the HoosLeft Podcast, a show about Indiana politics, history, and culture from an unapologetically leftist perspective. My name is Scott Aaron Rogers, and I’m recording from Bloomington.
Last week we took a break from the terrible news all around us to celebrate the debut book release from Hoosier author Anna Keibler. She left Indiana for China at age 19 and her memoir delves into the perils of abuse, deceit, infatuation, and misplaced trust while simultaneously illuminating the beauty of China's landscape, hospitality, and culture. Be sure to go back and check that one out if you haven’t yet.
This week though, we’re snapped back to the brutal reality of the present. On July 1, several new state laws went into effect here in Indiana, including one that may cost many Hoosiers the ability to access healthcare. This is from WTHR 13 out of Indianapolis:
One of [the laws] changes some of the requirements for Hoosiers on the Healthy Indiana Program.
That's the Medicaid program giving health insurance to close to 650,000 Hoosiers, according to the latest numbers from Indiana's Family and Social Services Administration.
Many of the HIP recipients work, some of them part-time, but they don't have health insurance through their employer or don't make enough money to buy their own.
HIP covers Hoosier adults ages 19 to 64.
Because Medicaid is run jointly by both the state and federal government, Indiana needs permission from the federal government to roll out some of what's in the new law, SEA 2.
That means parts of SEA 2 won't actually go into effect until the state gets the go-ahead at the federal level.
If and when that changes, critics of the new law say it could lead to thousands of HIP recipients losing their health insurance.
Here I will note that the first Trump administration encouraged and approved the use of waivers granting states the ability to condition Medicaid coverage on meeting work and reporting requirements, approving 13 states for such waivers, including Indiana, before a federal court ruled the work requirement unlawful. The Biden administration withdrew the waivers in all states that had been approved, though a different federal judge overturned that. The Supreme Court has never ruled on the issue, but I think it’s safe to say that the current Trump regime will gleefully enact the more stringent requirements and his packed, stolen, corrupt rubber-stamp court will lay out the red carpet.
The article continues,
"We estimate that should this provision be implemented hundreds of thousands, probably about 150,000 Hoosiers could lose their health care coverage simply because the process of reporting and demonstrating eligibility is very labor intensive and prone to error," said Tracey Hutchings-Goetz with Hoosier Action.
Another part of the new law, Hutchings-Goetz said has already been implemented, more frequent checks on HIP eligibility.
"What we've have heard from members is a bunch of data on an individual might not always be accurate," she said.
Hutchings-Goetz said that could slow down the HIP approval process, leaving Hoosiers waiting for coverage.
Waiting for coverage, so frustrated with the process they give up, foregoing necessary care because of the more-aptly-named “paperwork requirements.” The irony of Republicans complaining about government efficiency, talking about streamlining and running things like a business, while simultaneously spinning intricate webs of red tape should be lost on no one.
Those 150,000 Hoosiers are not statistics — they’re real people who deserve access to healthcare because they are human and that should be enough. Healthcare is a human right and as Americans we must acknowledge how far out of the global mainstream our for-profit model is, and GOP lawmakers keep finding new, innovative ways to make it worse.
My guest today helps some of the most vulnerable Hoosiers navigate the hurdles and hoops that a generation of Republican “leadership” has thrown in front of them. Jennifer David is a businesswoman & Board-Certified Behavior Analyst with a background in social work & special education including post graduate studies in autism and applied behavior analysis. She serves as Secretary for the Indiana Statewide Independent Living Council (INSILC) and was also a 2024 candidate for the Indiana House of Representatives.
In the following conversation, we’ll talk about the uncertainty caused by the new law, how mountains of paperwork are used as a barrier to care, and who really gains and loses from the way we do things. We’ll look at how cutting services to needy people is an unnecessary choice, how the disability community has always been on the front line against fascism, and why all of us little non-billionaires need to stick together.
Real quick before we get to the interview, please consider supporting HoosLeft with a paid subscription. This is an independent media project; I don’t paywall content; and I don’t rely on advertising. Only individuals like you keep this thing going. Maybe I could make more money if I did things differently, but I’m a terrible capitalist and I refuse to gatekeep valuable information in the middle of a political crisis. So please, if you find value in this work, go to HoosLeft.us and subscribe at the paid level - it’s only $5 a month, or $50 a year, to help me write more, research more, and organize more. Still, not ready for long-term commitment? You can make a one-time contribution on Cash App or Venmo. Links are in the show notes. Me, and my old body, would like to spend less time on construction, and more time constructing a better future for Indiana, but I need your financial support to do so.
If that doesn’t work for your budget at this time, you can still help out by liking and sharing on social media, commenting, leaving reviews, providing feedback, and forwarding articles to your people. We are building a community of Hoosiers dedicated to making this state, and its government, work for all of us, not just the elite few.
Follow us on Facebook, Bluesky, YouTube, and TikTok at HoosLeft, and I’m personally at scottrog78 on Instagram, Threads, Twitter and Mastodon. Tell the others. Let’s build a radically-democratic Indiana together. Thanks again.
Now, here is my conversation with Jennifer David.
Things We Talked About:
Jennifer’s 2024 Statehouse Race: https://ballotpedia.org/Jennifer_David
Her Disability Services Agency: https://www.obssindiana.com/
RFK Jr’s Controversial Autism Remarks: https://abcnews.go.com/GMA/Wellness/parents-experts-react-rfk-jrs-autism-claims/story?id=120911306
Statewide Independent Living Council: https://insilc.org/
Kimberly Renee Foundation: https://www.facebook.com/people/Kimberly-Renee-Foundation/61558257868397/
Indiana’s $1B Medicaid Forecasting Error: https://www.lakeshorepublicmedia.org/2023-12-19/indiana-medicaid-program-is-1-billion-more-expensive-after-forecasting-error
500,000 Hoosiers Disenrolled in 2024 After ‘Unwinding’ COVID-era Standards: https://www.wfyi.org/news/articles/indiana-wraps-up-medicaid-unwinding-prepares-for-return-of-cost-sharing
Medicaid Disruption As Autistic Youth “Age Out” Of System: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10775849/
The Myth of “Able-Bodied Adults” Abusing Medicaid: https://www.milbank.org/quarterly/opinions/whos-affected-by-medicaid-work-requirements-its-not-who-you-think/
Indiana Pathways to Aging Program a Mess: https://indianacapitalchronicle.com/2024/11/21/providers-seniors-continue-to-experience-challenges-under-pathways-program/
Disability Indiana Episode with Jeremy Warriner: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=on24mOOrHx0
Walking Spirit Disability Empowerment Unconference: https://walkingspirit.org/events/
Corruption Within State Agencies Led to Shortfall: https://www.indystar.com/story/news/investigations/2024/09/18/lawsuit-state-medicaid-program-overbilled-by-as-much-as-700-million/75278870007/
Braun Bans Indiana Medicaid from Advertising Its Services: https://www.wndu.com/2025/01/23/indiana-governor-mike-braun-signs-executive-order-stop-advertising-medicaid/
Indiana Forgoes Massive Tax Benefit of Cannabis Legalization: https://indianacapitalchronicle.com/2025/01/21/will-indiana-follow-its-neighbors-lead-on-marijuana/
Cannabis and Autism: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9887656/
Indiana Law Bans Marijuana Advertising: https://wsbt.com/news/local/new-law-bans-marijuana-advertising-in-indiana-michigan-green-stem-governor-mike-braun-jim-pressel-promoting-weed-dispensary-billboard
MMT Shows Austerity is a False Choice: https://www.taxresearch.org.uk/Blog/2024/10/18/mmt-is-not-a-policy-option-its-a-description-of-the-economy/
What What You Buy With Jeff Bezos’ Wedding Money? https://www.seattletimes.com/business/amazon/how-would-you-spend-jeff-bezos-wedding-budget-readers-did-the-math
Reagan’s “Young Bucks”: https://www.esquire.com/entertainment/tv/a34733508/reagans-showtime-racism-matt-tyrnauer-ian-haney-lopez-donald-trump/
…and Mike Johnson’s 29-Year-Old Gamer: https://www.nytimes.com/2025/06/10/us/politics/republicans-medicaid-cuts.html
First, They Came for the Disabled: https://columbian.gwu.edu/holocaust-killing-centers-historical-nightmare-disabled
Nazi Fashion is Back: https://www.haaretz.com/life/2025-04-03/ty-article-magazine/.premium/power-fetishism-and-black-leather-the-nazi-look-is-back-in-fashion/00000195-f670-d2fe-aff7-fff55e9d0000
Embrace Autism: https://embrace-autism.com/
Indiana Rural Summit: https://indianaruralsummit.org/
Once again, that was Jennifer David, Board Certified Behavior Analyst, disability advocate, and host of the Disability Indiana podcast, which you can find on YouTube.
We’ll continue to look at these Medicaid cuts, as well as their effects on rural hospitals this Sunday on HoosLeft This Week, streaming live at 10:30 am ET on the Project Next Media network - YouTube, FaceBook Live, and Twitch - links in the show notes. Come check that out live if you get a chance. It’s a lot of fun, if you can call following the news in this timeline fun. But sometimes you have to laugh to keep from going crazy. I bring together panelists from the democratic socialist left to never-Trump conservatives and we look at the week’s headlines from around Indiana and beyond. We’ll also dive into one big thing, and that’s where we’ll keep the Medicaid conversation going. Jennifer will be there and we hope to see you there in the comments, but if you can’t make it live, the program will be available as a podcast Sunday afternoon.
Thanks again to Jennifer for her time and for all of the work she does in her community. Find just one way to help yours. hey, I could use hand too. One last time, please consider a paid subscription at HoosLeft.US, where you’ll find everything I’ve ever published. I rely solely on the generosity of kind patrons like you to make this information available for free to everybody. In addition to the website, you can also find me on Facebook, Bluesky, YouTube and TikTok at HoosLeft or on most other social media sites at ScottRog78, where you can hit me up with feedback, tips, ideas, and concerns. Finally, please forward the show to a friend and have them pass it on. Let’s keep building this project - and a truly democratic state - one conversation at a time. Until the next one, this has been the HoosLeft podcast. I’m Scott Aaron Rogers. Love each other, Indiana.
HoosLeft on Social Media:
https://www.facebook.com/hoosleft
https://bsky.app/profile/hoosleft.us
https://www.youtube.com/@hoosleft
https://www.tiktok.com/@hoosleft
https://www.instagram.com/scottrog78/
Share this post