Activists Call For Hill To Withdraw From ACA Lawsuit

Local health care advocates want Attorney General Curtis Hill to withdraw the state from a lawsuit that aims to dismantle the Affordable Care Act.

The advocates delivered letters and a 600-signature petition to Hill’s office Friday.

Indiana is one of 20 states in a lawsuit that seeks to eliminate the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare. The Trump administration announced in June it would no longer defend the federal health care law.

Protect Our Care Indiana spokesperson Kate Shepherd says the lawsuit threatens more than those who use the ACA’s marketplace.

“If successful, insurance companies could once again deny or drop from the coverage the more than 2.7 million Hoosiers with preexisting conditions, like asthma, diabetes, or cancer,” Shepherd says.

Indiana University McKinney School of Law clinical professor Fran Quigley is also the coordinator of People Of Faith For Access To Medicines. He says Hill didn’t need to join the lawsuit.

“Stop misusing the power of your office. Stop misusing the taxpayer funds we’re paying for to administer this lawsuit,” Quigley says.

Hill responded to the petition late Friday afternoon. He said in a statement, since Congress repealed the tax but left the individual mandate in place, the ACA is unconstitutional.

"I hope to see the emergence of sound policies that constitutionally safeguard the healthcare needs of all Americans, including those with pre-existing conditions," Hill said in a statement. "I support efforts to this end by Gov. [Eric] Holcomb and the General Assembly here in Indiana, and I support such efforts by Congress and the Trump administration on the national level.”

This story has been updated with a statement from Attorney General Curtis Hill.