INDIANAPOLIS – Rep. Braun’s support for gutting protections from the 1.1 million Hoosiers under the age of 65 with a pre-existing condition is on full display today, as hearings begin for the lawsuit he supports that would destroy those protections.

Hearings before a federal judge in Texas start today for the lawsuit brought by the Department of Justice, the Indiana Attorney General and nearly 20 other Republican attorneys general to strip away protections from millions of Americans with pre-existing conditions. The lawsuit expressly aims to end protections for the 1.1 million Hoosiers under 65 who have a pre-existing condition such as asthma, diabetes, or a history of cancer. If the court finds in their favor, insurance companies could strip those Hoosiers’ health coverage from them or charge them unaffordable premiums.

Rep. Braun has vocally backed this lawsuit, as well as every other recent GOP proposal to end these protections and dismantle the health care system. In the past year, he has supported the House Republican bill which would have removed protections altogether, as well as the Senate Republican bill which would have allowed insurers to raise rates to unaffordable levels for consumers with these health issues.

Recently, Rep. Braun has tried to back away from his position on this issue, hypocritically claiming he wants to keep protections for pre-existing conditions in place while vocally supporting the lawsuit aimed at ripping them away. Asked how he could claim to support these protections while coming out in favor of the DOJ lawsuit to gut them, however, Rep. Braun could not come up with an answer. And despite kicking off a “solutions tour” yesterday, he still has yet to outline a concrete plan he supports that would retain these protections.

“Rep. Braun’s vocal support for gutting protections for pre-existing conditions remains front and center for Hoosiers as hearings for the DOJ lawsuit to end these protections start today,” said Michael Feldman, spokesman for the Indiana Democratic Party. “No matter what he says, Rep. Braun’s open support for the lawsuit makes clear the well-being of 1.1 million Hoosiers is less important to him than blindly following his party leaders.”

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