Indiana’s economic woes are long standing and may be having an adverse effect on the health of our people,
because Hoosiers can’t consistently gain access to excellent health care.
Consumer-directed health plans really work, at least according to WellPoint Inc., which has made a big push to sell them recently.
Four years after its launch, the Indiana Health Information Exchange is laying the groundwork to take its game outside state
borders. The Indianapolis-based not-for-profit offers a service that provides patient records and test results via computer
to hospitals and doctors around central Indiana. But now, its leaders think they can take their expertise to other cities
and help them develop their own health information exchanges.
Spending on health care is rising faster in Indiana than it is across the country. Yet the state’s job and income growth continue
to lag national norms.
Bob Brody, CEO of St. Francis Hospital and Health Centers, is spearheading an emerging group of central Indiana health reformers
who want to start a bottom-up process to develop alternative solutions to the state’s–and possibly the nation’s–health care
crisis.
In the last three years, Indianapolis hospitals have seen a substantial run-up in the amount of charity care they give to patients who can’t pay. The cost of care is rising, more people are uninsured, and government officials are scrutinizing not-for-profit hospitals to make sure they give enough charity care to merit their tax-exempt status.
Clarian Health Partners will start posting prices for care on its Web site early next year, a move aimed at advancing the national movement toward greater transparency in health care costs.
