Indiana Hospital Association Begins ‘Access Denied’

INDIANAPOLIS–The Indiana Hospital Association (IHA) has started what they call a new effort to “raise awareness about abusive insurer practices that leave Hoosiers without the ability to get the medically necessary treatment.” It’s called “Access Denied”.

It features a web portal that breaks down how insurance companies block care, shares stories from the media with examples of insurer-practice abuse, and includes a tool that allows people to submit their own stories.

“Across Indiana, large insurance companies create barriers that leave patients waiting, even while their conditions worsen. These companies are also using their market power to undercut independent providers that are struggling to stay open — and leaving patients with fewer options for local care,” said IHA President Scott B. Tittle.

According to IHA, recent polling shows 80% of Hoosiers say insurers are mainly focused on making money while 72% say insurers have raised health care costs over the last two years. The so-called “Big Two” — Elevance (Anthem) and UnitedHealthcare — control 86% of Indiana’s commercial market. The IHA says this gives them enormous power over who gets timely care and from which providers.

A recent State-commissioned report by the Indiana Department of Insurance shows the largest Indiana hospital systems have made significant progress reducing commercial prices — by as much as 7 percentage points on average in 2024 compared to the year before. And several national rankings point to steady declines in health care costs and lower prices among all Indiana hospitals compared to other states.

“Our hospitals are doing their part to make health care more affordable,” Tittle said. “It’s time for insurers to do theirs and pass these savings on to patients. Yet while companies like Elevance are raking in billions in profit, they are restricting care, narrowing provider options, and driving up health care costs.”

Tittle says he’s grateful for lawmakers at the Statehouse who are using legislative action to try to protect both patients and independent physicians.