Medicaid Work Requirements: Who Will the New State Policies Impact?

Excerpt

Early in 2018, the Trump administration approved four states (AR, IN, KY, and NH) to implement Medicaid work requirements, a controversial policy requiring non-disabled adults to spend at least 20 hours a week working, volunteering, attending school or job training, or searching for employment in order to receive Medicaid. In October, Wisconsin's Medicaid work requirement was also approved, and there are 10 states with pending applications.  While the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services’ Administrator described work requirements as “a policy that makes Medicaid a path out of poverty,”¹ the Obama administration rejected the policy because reducing health care access was viewed as inconsistent with the objectives of Medicaid.² In June, Arkansas was the first state to begin implementing Medicaid work requirements. The other four states are scheduled to begin implementation in 2019, though Kentucky may face a second legal challenge (the first halted implementation shortly before the scheduled July 2018 start) and Wisconsin's newly elected Democratic governor may not implement the policy.³ …