Indiana health leaders gathered ahead of the legislative session to set priorities, and Indiana Public Broadcasting’s Jill Sheridan reports much of the discussion identified social factors that play into Hoosier’s health.

Indiana ranks near the bottom for numerous health measures like obesity, smoking rates and drug overdose deaths.  Indiana Hospital Association President Brian Tabor says lawmakers should increase public health funding. “Our basic health metrics as a state and the fact that we’ve sort of underfunded the infrastructure there.”

Tabor is also a member of the Alliance for a Healthier Indiana and says the coalition will push for health-related legislation this session. “That helps us reduce our use of tobacco as a state, look for policies that help us improve how care is delivered, work more easily across the continuum of care.”

Public health leaders say they are also monitoring changes coming to HIP 2.0, including a tobacco surcharge to incentivize healthier behavior.