EAST CHICAGO | About a dozen union employees who have lost their health insurance coverage at Ameristar Casino showed up Tuesday at a hearing about the Cline Avenue bridge to hand out leaflets and make their plight known.

"They are telling us they are losing money, and they will have to cut jobs, and we are saying, 'Don't blame the bridge, fix the bridge,' " Christina Davis, a casino buffet server and a Unite Here Local 1 member, said at the meeting hosted by the Indiana Department of Transportation.

In October, Davis and a number of fellow casino employees had their hours cut from full time to part time, and within months they lost their employer-sponsored health insurance benefits.

Ameristar public relations manager Reggie Dotson confirmed there have been staff downsizings at the casino, mainly as a result of the recession. Since November, the closure of the Cline Avenue bridge over the Indiana Harbor and Ship Canal also has affected casino business, he said.

"We all know the economy is suffering right now," Dotson said. "And our company had to take a hard look at all our properties and make hard decisions as it relates to personnel."

Ameristar tried to put together a statement on the Cline Avenue closure in conjunction with the union for Tuesday's hearing but was not able to complete the effort, Dotson said.

For Ameristar buffet server Gina Williams, who watched Tuesday's proceedings from the back of the auditorium, the health care issue suddenly has become a lot more than just an interesting debate in Congress.

When her hours were reduced and her Ameristar-sponsored health care was cut, she had to tell her college-age daughter and son.

"It was hard to explain to them you can't go to the doctor," she said. "You have to be really sick before you go."