Indiana Gov. Mike Braun was sworn in on Monday and his administration has already made changes to the Medicaid program. The most significant change involves how often the Family and Social Services Administration checks whether people are still eligible.

Mitch Roob, the new secretary of FSSA, said the Braun administration will begin checking eligibility once a quarter instead of once a year.

When asked about the legality of this change, he said it wasn’t a concern.

“If somebody files a lawsuit against me, then I'll worry about that then,” Roob said. “I doubt the incoming administration will question our authority to do it quarterly.”

Advocates warn this move could create a heavier administrative burden on the state, which could end up increasing costs in the long run. Roob said the Braun administration wants to “constrain” Medicaid eligibility across all the different programs.

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He also said the administration is cracking down on advertising for Medicaid programs.

“The post-COVID [enrollment] numbers in Indiana far exceed those in some other states, and one does not know exactly why that is,” Roob said. “But one reason may be advertising for Medicaid.”

Roob also spoke in favor of Senate Bill 2, which would make significant changes to the Healthy Indiana Plan, or HIP, that could limit coverage. Those changes include a cap on enrollment, a lifetime limit on eligibility and the state’s previously halted work requirements.

Abigail is our health reporter. Contact them at aruhman@wboi.org.