Separating fact from political immunization

Last week, we struck a nerve and killed SB272. 

Senator Andy Zay was so frustrated that his legislative assistant called to schedule a meeting with us, and we obliged. 
 
Watch the video recap in the last blog post or on Facebook.
 
Ultimately, Zay’s claims that his reason for filing this bill is to “put guardrails on clinics that already exist in schools”.
 
Zay paints Biden as the boogeyman and wants YOU to believe that he is working to protect your kids.
 
Based on the way the bill is written, we didn’t buy that for a second. The bill looks like Zay wants PRIMARY CARE clinics in schools.

It's time to separate fact from political immunization.

What is motivating Zay?

Could the Federal Medicaid money be his primary motivation?
 
We think so.
 
We think Zay sees your kids as little cash cows as they sit in public schools. We will illustrate that throughout this blog post.

In an Indiana Senate Press Release from Jan 25th, Zay is quoted speaking on SB272, stating, “The goal of this bill is to ensure that there are standards put in place by law for school-based health centers”.
 
Zay wants to ensure that there are standards put in law for school-based health clinics (SBHC).

He wants clinics in schools.

Once there are standards in state code for clinics, they will appear en masse across the state.

Zay testified on January 24th that SB272 would be an important bill to “help Indiana schools pull down federal Medicaid money for services they often already provide”.
 
We believe his primary goal is to get SBHC in schools and access federal Medicaid dollars, and he is using the idea of “parental rights” as a means to motivate Hoosiers into accepting language that has repeatedly been pushed in the State House.

This is an attempt at "Political Immunization".

It appears he has fooled some into believing him. We watched disappointingly as Leah Wilson, founder of Stand for Health Freedom, advocated for the bill and subsequently confused Hoosiers who are against SBHC.

H4ML is firmly against school-based health clinics.

Even if we can't stop them all together, we know that inviting them is NOT the answer.

We know putting "guardrails" on school-based health clinics (SBHC) will only ENSURE more battles on the horizon.

H4ML does not want to fight these battles for years to come.

This bill would ensure that our time, talent, and treasure will be wrapped up in the never-ending battle for children in schools. When any battle about schools should be to ensure effective education.

The idea of "parental presence" is unrealistic.

Zay & his LA even reported that the reduction of this guardrail was part of their discussion on how to keep the bill alive.

Guard your time Hoosiers. Don't fall prey to political immunization by legislators, or those willing to trade access for weak policy.

Zay repeatedly cited the SAFER Communities Act of 2021 as instituting these clinics in schools and the impetus for their presence here in Indiana. This will be an important detail to remember as you read.
 
SB272 of 2024 is the second version of this bill that we were aware of. The previous bill was SB321 of 2023.

The comparison of Zay’s two bills speaks more to his motivation for the institution of clinics, rather than parental rights.

In 2023, SB 321 stated that School-Based Health Clinics (SBHC) could NOT replace the role of the school nurse.
 
Whereas, in 2024, SB 272 only requires that school nurses be available to provide first aid and emergency services.
 
Uh-oh, Andy! Looks like the scope of the school nurse is being greatly reduced. How long before school nurses are eliminated and students are forced into SBHC?
 
Secondly, in 2023 SB231 would have removed vaccination records from school transcripts, but the 2024 version does not.

Why?
 
While these changes aren’t great for parental rights, they aren’t damning to his reputation.

I know you are probably getting frustrated and your questions for Zay are mounting. Keep reading!

History can teach us a lot. Let’s stroll down memory lane.

The SAFER Communities Act was filed in October of 2021, but didn’t go into effect until June 2022.
 
Zay did not file a bill on the topic in 2022.
 
Interestingly, Zay was up for re-election in 2022.

Coincidence?
 
However, prior to the filing and subsequent passage of the SAFER Communities Act, Zay filed SB51 in 2021 titled Medicaid reimbursement for schools.  The bill focused on pulling Medicaid dollars into the schools and ensuring that physical therapy services were reimbursed.
 
Our policy investigator, Lindsey, found an Indiana Senate Republicans press release from December of 2020. The release states:

… this legislation, which Zay has championed for years, could free up $100-$200 million in funds for schools to use toward teacher pay.
"Recommendation No. 20 in the Teacher Compensation Commission's report suggests SB 51 could be a solution to achieve the goal of raising Indiana's average teacher pay," Zay said. "If we work aggressively to capture Medicaid dollars for our IEP students and other special-needs students, my bill could make available up to one-third of the amount needed to get to the $60,000 average teacher salary."

Did you catch that... “Legislation, which Zay has championed for years”?

Zay confirmed similar sentiments regarding the desire to collect Medicaid funding in a February Senate Republican Press Release:

"The passage of Senate Bill 51 makes clear that finding sustainable solutions for increasing teacher pay is a priority for Indiana legislators," Zay said. "I have been championing this legislation for years, and I look forward to working with my colleagues in the House as this bill continues through the legislative process."

SB51 adds additional reimbursements for services provided under section 504 plans, behavioral intervention plans, individualized healthcare plans, and nursing services by a licensed nurse. All of which would go towards increasing teacher’s pay.
 
Is Zay looking out for the students, or the teacher's pay?
 
Our policy investigator summed it up perfectly: "This legislation was a broad expansion of services reimbursable to schools via Federal Medicaid dollars. It increases federal control of our schools and leads the way for SBHC, while simultaneously enabling schools to redirect funding and increase teacher pay. Zay appears to be on a mission to massively increase federal Medicaid dollars flowing into our schools to meet the demands of those lobbying to increase teacher pay."
 
But wait… Is that it?
 
Nope. Zay’s desire to institute school clinics and harvest Medicaid money goes back to 2020!

In 2020, he filed SB 141 and SB142.
 
SB141 specifically called for “School-Based Health Clinics” and defined them:

Sec. 170.5. "School-based health clinic", for purposes of IC 12-15, means a clinic operated on behalf of a public school (as defined in IC 20-18-2-15(1)), including a charter school, that provides health care services either:

(1) by qualified health care providers employed by the school; or
(2) through a contract with a health care provider, including any of the following:

                           (A) A hospital licensed under IC 16-21.
                           (B) A physician group practice.
                           (C) A federally-qualified health center (as defined in 42 U.S.C.1396d(l)(2)(B)).
                          (D) A rural health clinic (as defined in 42 U.S.C. 1396d(l)(1)).
                         (E) A community mental health clinic.

SB 141 was filed January 6th, 2020, long before the filing and passage of the Safer Communities Act.
 
SB142 did not mention school-based clinics but shows persistent effort to secure Medicaid dollars for schools, which is consistent with his behavior at present. 
 
Zay’s desire to open school clinics goes back to 2019. Zay authored SB437 titled School based services and Medicaid. SB 437 had the exact same definition for School-based health clinics as above.
 
Four out of the last six years Zay has authored legislation for school based clinics in order to pull Medicaid funding down.

The one consistent theme throughout all of Zay’s legislation is Medicaid funding.

Let’s look at what he had to say when he initially wrote the legislation in 2019. This excerpt is from a Feb 2019 press release from the Indiana Senate Republicans:

  SB437 would allow schools to better leverage federal dollars to address health concerns facing students and staff, including mental health, substance abuse and socio-emotional learning. “The well-being and health of Hoosiers is important to me, and ensuring students, faculty and staff receive the care they need is vital,” Zay said. “This legislation would give schools another tool in the toolbox to address the health of their students and even their staff. Research shows students perform better when they are healthy and receiving the services they need, and I hope this bill will help push Indiana’s K-12 system forward.”

So, what do you think?

Is Zay fighting for parental rights?
 
Hoosiers, we don’t want health clinics in our schools. One clinic is too many.
 
Medical mistakes happen.
 
In fact, medical errors were credited with over 800,000 deaths or cases of permanent disability by CNN in July of 2023.
 
Doing a simple google search reveals that medical errors are thought to be the 3rd leading cause of death in the United States.
 
Schools are struggling to provide education. What would happen if medical care was performed with the same bureaucracy?
 
Clinics must not be allowed on school grounds!
 
Zay is going to have to work exceptionally hard to dig himself out of this hole.
 
If he wants Hoosiers to believe that he is a parental rights champion and isn’t trying to advance the agenda of those who wish to remove parents from the health care of their children, he is going to have to do some massive work.

Zay may want you to think he can't do anything more this year, but we know better.

Call Zay 317-234-9441

Tell him:

“Use the second half of the session to protect kids. Ban clinics from school grounds.”

---

****Just a note: if you live in Congressional District 3, Zay wants to represent you in D.C.
 
IF he can’t say no to federal money now, how is he going to represent you in D.C.?
 
If you live in Adams, Allen, Blackford, DeKalb, Huntington, LaGrange, Noble, Steuben, Wells and Whitley counties, or northern Jay and northeast Kosciusko counties you may want to call Zay’s campaign (260)356-3775 and let them know your concerns, too.

That was certainly a lot of information, thank you for being informed.

Hoosiers for Medical Liberty is dedicated to truth and transparency. We use these tools to ensure that Medical Liberty is at the forefront.

Our mission is possible through the dedication of our activists, however, without funding we wouldn't be able to send texts and make politics easier for everyone.

If you don't already, will you support our work?

Will you help us combat confusing messages and political immunization?

If you are able, become a monthly donor with $24 for 2024!

If you are not able to make that kind of commitment, we appreciate anything you can contribute to the battle for Medical Liberty!

Thank you,
H4ML Team