TAKING ACTION:

If you are committed to the future health workforce of Indiana, please take the time to contact your state legislator to share your support for state funding for the Indiana AHEC Program at levels no less than $1,387,500 in each of Fiscal Years 2010 and 2011 (total biennial request of $2,775,000).

You are most effective when you contact the legislators who were elected to serve YOU.  If you don’t know who they are, you can always find your legislators by visiting www.in.gov/apps/sos/legislator/search/.

The following committee members will be working closely with the budgets during the special session: 

House Ways and Means Committee

Chair: Representative Crawford
Vice Chair: Representative Pelath
Members:  Avery, Chair of Budget Subcommittee; Welch, Vice Chair for Budget; Goodin, Vice Chair for Finance and K-12; Klinker, Vice Chair for Higher Education; Stemler, Vice Chair for Medicaid and Health; Candelaria Reardon, Day, DeLaney, Herrell, Kersey, Pearson, Pryor, Tyler. Espich R.M.M., Borror, Cherry, Crouch, Davis, Dermody, McClain, Pond, Thompson, Turner.

Senate Appropriations Committee

Chair: Senator Kenley
Vice Chair:
Members:  Dillon R.M., Boots, Hershman, Lubbers, Miller, Mishler, Wyss, Broden R.M.M., Hume, Rogers, Tallian 

TALKING POINTS:

Indiana’s six Area Health Education Centers provide health workforce development that addresses the needs in vulnerable urban and rural areas for health providers. By linking health providers, training programs, K-12 schools, and communities in training partnerships, AHECs around the state help “grow our own” health care professionals. They help boost recruitment and retention of health care providers in communities that most need improved access to health care.

Indiana needs AHECs. Fifty-nine of Indiana’s 92 counties have federally designated Health Professions Shortage Areas of physicians, dentists, mental health providers. Too few clinicians leads to higher unnecessary ER visits, avoidable hospitalizations, poorer health, and increased costs for all.

AHEC’s “grow our own” methods work. Research right here in Indiana shows that medical students from Indiana rural communities are five times more likely to practice rural. Our medical students that train in smaller communities outside Indianapolis are also more likely to choose primary care and practice rural.

AHEC brings resources into Indiana. The Indiana AHEC program has brought in $8 million in federal funds over the past nine years. For every state dollar invested to date, $8 in federal, local, and in-kind support has been generated.

Cutting AHECs will damage Indiana immediately and long-term. Three of six AHECs will close with 8 jobs lost right away. 8,000 youth will not be exposed to health careers, 1,600 middle and high school students will lose opportunities for academic enrichment, and 1,500 health professions students will not be trained in the rural and urban Indiana communities that most need them. Loss of competitiveness for federal funding will likely eliminated remaining AHECs within 2 years.

AHEC is demonstrating positive outcomes and return on investment. Preliminary data indicate that AHEC youth graduate and choose health professions at higher rates than their peers. And 49% of AHEC-trained health professions students report increased interest in caring for medically underserved patients as a result of their AHEC experiences.

AHEC is cost-conscious. AHEC’s request for FY10 and FY2011 reflect a reduction from the $1.75 million that was appropriated to AHEC for FY2009.

For materials that you can share with your legislator, please click here. 

CONTACT AHEC:

Please contact Angela Holloway at anhollow@iupui.edu or 317-319-6461 if you have any questions or would like additional information.

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