Gov. Mike Braun debuted a suite of executive orders under his “Make Indiana Healthy Again” initiative Tuesday morning, drawing support from top Trump administration officials Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Dr. Mehmet Oz.

Kennedy and Oz traveled to Indianapolis to commend Braun’s commitment Kennedy’s “Make America Healthy Again” platform. President Donald Trump selected Kennedy as his health secretary and Oz as administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

“You’re setting the stage at the federal level,” Braun said. “We’re going to be your best ally at the state level.”

Braun is seeking to remove candy and soda as food items covered by the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, commonly referred to as food stamps. He also tightened work requirements for the program.

Braun’s orders also seek to clamp down on benefit payouts to ineligible Hoosiers in the nutrition program, often shortened as SNAP, and Medicaid.

The governor also seeks to also establish a “Governor’s Fitness Test,” similar to the Presidential Fitness Test, and signaled his administration’s intention to study food dyes, SNAP benefits, diet-related chronic illness and Hoosiers’ food consumption.

Tuesday’s executive orders include:

• EO 25-52: Increases work requirements to access SNAP benefits
• EO 25-53: Mandates the Indiana Family and Social Services Administration provide benefits only to eligible Hoosiers
• EO 25-54: Orders a state study of SNAP effectiveness
• EO 25-55: Seeks to remove candy and soda as eligible foods under SNAP
• EO 25-56: Orders a state study on artificial food dyes and additives
• EO 25-57: Orders a state study on diet-related chronic diseases
• EO 25-58: Orders a study of how Hoosiers access locally produced foods and direct-to-consumer food sales
• EO 25-59: Establishes a “Governor’s Fitness Test”
• EO 25-60: Narrows avenues of how the state confirms Medicaid eligibility, collects data on improper payments and creates penalties for hospitals who make incorrect presumptive eligibility determinations

Kennedy and Oz commended Braun’s actions, saying the nine executive orders are the most a governor has signed in support of the federal health policy shift so far.

“I also take this moment to encourage governors all over the country to follow the lead of Indiana,” Kennedy said.

Steps away from the Indiana Statehouse, Tuesday’s event attracted dozens of Republican state officials and lawmakers, including House Speaker Todd Huston, Lt. Gov. Micah Beckwith and U.S. Rep. Victoria Spartz.

It also brought protesters, who chanted outside the building and the room where the press conference was held. As lawmakers walked out, members of the crowd berated them for policies related to the Trump administration.

Kennedy spoke at length about how chronic illness, especially diabetes, can be reduced through healthier food consumption. And Braun’s adaption of his national platform, he said, speeds up the culture change they are hoping to enact.

“What’s happening here for the states is driving this movement and driving cultural change,” Kennedy said.

Indiana joins Arkansas as the first states to request candy and soda food stamp changes. The U.S. Department of Agriculture would need to approve a state’s waiver to restrict the items.

Since his time in the U.S. Senate, Braun has criticized the health care industry for high prices and a lack of transparency. As Indiana governor, he’s supported legislation and signed executive orders seeking to increase transparency and encourage lower prices.

Indiana has ranked poorly in national health rankings for years. The 2024 United Health Foundation annual report ranked Indiana 36th overall for health, with higher-than-national rates of obesity, smoking and e-cigarette use, diagnoses of multiple chronic conditions and drug-related deaths.

In recent budget cycles, Indiana lawmakers shifted their approach to preventative funding for health care, but that support has tapered slightly in recent years.

In 2023, the Legislature set aside $225 million over 2024-25 for local public health investments as a means to improve Hoosiers’ health outcomes. However, the current proposed budget reduces that investment to $100 million each year for 2026-27.

By Cate Charron, Indianapolis Business Journal