INDIANAPOLIS – State officials warned Friday that Hoosiers who enroll in the federal marketplace for subsidized health insurance could be penalized later if the federal government approves a specialized program for Indiana.
Enrollment in the federal exchange starts today, and the interplay between the two possible insurance plans is the latest tactic to put pressure on the federal government to make a decision on Indiana's proposal.
“Gov. (Mike) Pence has communicated … that time is of the essence and that vulnerable Hoosiers should have certainty about their health care options for 2015,” said Christy Denault, communications director for Pence.
The Healthy Indiana Plan has more than 50,000 Hoosiers enrolled. It is considered a consumer-driven health care plan because participants must pay a small monthly premium and coverage can be taken away.
Pence has sought a waiver from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to expand the HIP program to hundreds of thousands of uninsured Hoosiers, starting in 2015, as an alternative to Medicaid.
Hoosiers with incomes between 100 percent and 138 percent of the federal poverty level would be eligible. But the federal government has not yet acted as the two sides haggle over the premium or copay requirements.
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