Indiana Hospitals Anxiously Await Medicaid Ruling

Indiana hospitals that agreed to give up $155 billion in government payments in exchange for more money for a Medicaid expansion are anxiously waiting to see whether the federal government will let Indiana use its Healthy Indiana Plan for that expansion.

The hospitals could be left with nothing to show for the payment reductions if the government doesn't agree to Gov. Mike Pence's proposal to use HIP as its expansion vehicle.

The Evansville Courier & Press reports hospitals statewide expect to lose more than $100 million a year to Medicaid funding cuts under the federal health-care overhaul.

Pence is leery of expanding traditional Medicaid and wants a waiver to use Medicaid funds to expand the state's Healthy Indiana Plan, which is to expire at year's end.