Amish Hoosiers exempt from health law

[IndianaGreen]

Amish Hoosiers exempt from health law

When the rules kick in that require most people to buy a health insurance policy, about 40,000 Hoosiers will be exempt.

The landmark law that overhauls the U.S. health insurance system creates a carve-out for people who are members of churches that have a conscientious objection to private or public insurance.

That includes the Amish, who have a long-established practice of not participating in government-run programs.

“They believe the church has the responsibility, actually the divine responsibility, to provide for its own members. In a sense, God is holding them accountable for taking care of their elderly, their disabled, people who might be out of work,” said Steven Nolt, a history professor at Goshen College who studies the Amish and Mennonites.

http://www.journalgazette.net/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20100404/NEWS03/304049878