One Half Down. One Half To Go.
Posted on 02/11/24
The 2024 Indiana General Assembly has reached the halfway point, so let’s check to see where things stand with several bills that AARP Indiana is working on this session.
Health Care the Hoosier Way
- Mobile Integrated Health is a patient-centered model of care delivered in a patient's home or in a mobile environment. The programs offer a range of services, including diabetic monitoring, disease management, vaccinations, substance abuse and mental illness mitigation, and maternal and infant care.
- SB 142 requires health plans to reimburse for emergency medical services that are performed or provided as part of mobile integrated healthcare programs specifically in Delaware, White, and Montgomery counties from July 1, 2024, through June 30, 2027.
- Allowing these MIH programs to collect reimbursement for three years, as well as gather data during that time, will assist in efforts of expanding this option across the state.
- SB 142 passed out of the Senate 49-0.
- SB 10 creates the Indiana Community Cares pilot program which allows eligible local units to apply for an annual grant to be used for building out customized response teams for Hoosiers having behavioral health challenges in both rural and urban Indiana.
- By investing in proactive and sustainable paramedicine resources, Hoosiers will receive much needed assistance while also reducing public safety expenses.
- SB 10 passed out of the Senate 48-0.
Learn more about how one community is using mobile integrated health to increase access to care for their residents.
Protecting Hoosier Homeowners
- HB 1068 addresses a predatory practice, sometimes referred to as "wholesaling," in which a vulnerable homeowner is convinced to sell their property significantly below market value. In many cases, the homeowner doesn't know the identity of the buyer until closing, at which time the "wholesaler" walks away with much of the homeowner's equity.
- HB 1068 passed out of the House 94-0.
- HB 1222 protects consumers by prohibiting the filing of unfair real estate fee agreements in property records. Homeowners across the state have fallen victim to these quick-cash marketing techniques used by out-of-state companies which offer Hoosiers a nominal upfront payment in exchange for a 40-year agreement for future services. The company then records a document in the County Recorder’s Office, clouding the title.
- HB 1222 passed out of the House 94-0.
- SB 5 gives water utilities another tool to assist in replacing customer-owned lead service lines so that the building’s occupants have clean and safe drinking water.
- SB 5 passed out of the Senate 49-0.
- SB 5 passed out of the Senate 49-0.
Roadblocks to Transit
- SB 52 would prohibit the construction of dedicated bus lanes until 2025 and potentially beyond. Dedicated lanes are a critical component of Bus Rapid Transit (BRT). Bus Rapid Transit improves reliability, which means the bus arrives at regular intervals, regardless of the time of day.
- By restricting dedicated lanes, IndyGo’s proposed Blue Line won’t move forward.
- The Blue Line is a bus rapid transit project in Indianapolis stretching 22 miles from Cumberland, IN to the Indianapolis International Airport and has already spurred $399 million in economic development along the corridor.
- SB 52 passed out of the Senate 35-14.
- Beyond transit, the creation of dedicated lanes brings new infrastructure like sidewalks and ADA curb ramps that would not be possible otherwise. These improvements make our streets safer for pedestrians and drivers.
- By restricting communities across the state from having the choice of dedicated lanes, the Indiana General Assembly is blocking options that allow older Hoosiers to age in place and help them engage in their community’s civic, economic and social lives.
Financial Security for Retired Hoosiers
- HB 1004 offers a 13th check to public retirees — teachers, former state employees, and others — based on years of service.
- HB 1004 passed the House 97-0.
