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Read. Follow. Verify.Indiana Bill HB 1393 Prohibits Health Care Providers from Denying Necessary Care Due to Medical Debt
Last action · January 8, 2026: First reading: referred to Committee on Public HealthSponsor: Vanessa Summers
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What This Bill Proposed
Indiana House Bill 1393 prohibits health care providers from refusing necessary medical services to patients or their dependents solely because they owe past medical debt to that provider, effective July 1, 2026. Violations of this requirement constitute a deceptive consumer sales act that is actionable exclusively by the state attorney general.
- House Bill 1393 was introduced during the Second Regular Session of the 124th Indiana General Assembly in 2026. context
Who It Would Have Affected
Groups the bill's text would have affected, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.
Indiana consumers
Patients gain legal protection ensuring they cannot be denied necessary medical care from a provider solely due to existing medical debt.
Health care providers
Providers are prohibited from conditioning the provision of necessary medical services on the payment of past-due health care debt.
Key Facts
- Prohibits health care providers from refusing necessary services to consumers or their dependents solely because of outstanding health care debt owed to that provider.
- Applies to consumers whose principal residence is in Indiana, including individuals legally responsible for minors or incapacitated persons.
- Defines 'necessary services' as services provided to prevent or treat serious disfigurement, impairment of bodily parts or organs, loss of consciousness, or death.
- Excludes credit card debt from the definition of health care debt unless the card is issued under a plan offered specifically for the payment of health care items.
Show all 6 facts
- Establishes that violating the ban on denying care is a deceptive act under Indiana law, actionable exclusively by the attorney general.
- Sets an effective date of July 1, 2026 for all provisions.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a doctor refuse to treat me if I owe them money from a previous visit?
Who can enforce a violation if a provider refuses care due to debt?
What types of medical care are covered by this requirement?
What else do you want to know?
News Coverage
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Votes, people, money & the original sourceWhere This Stands
This bill did not become law - Died at adjournment · in House committee.
Procedural history
2 actions- Jan 8, 2026HouseIntroducedFirst reading: referred to Committee on Public Health
- Jan 8, 2026HouseAuthored by Representative Summers
Version history
Only one version on file - nothing to compare yet. As later stages (committee substitute, engrossed, enrolled) are captured, the redline appears here.
View official text →Lobbying Activity
No state lobbying filings in our records match this bill. Federal lobbying reports (LDA) cover Congress, so they are not listed on state bills.
Full breakdown
Who this bill affects and the strongest case for and against it, written only from the bill’s own text.
Sponsors
Discoveries
Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.
Limiting Private Enforcement
The bill restricts enforcement actions for violations exclusively to the attorney general under deceptive consumer sales statutes, precluding private right of action.
Connected Entities
Sources
iga.in.gov
Analysis Score
0–100- Significance20Lowered because this bill did not pass (its text scored 75)
- Controversy60Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
- Entertainment10Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
- Buzz35Current news / social attention level
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