Trump Administration Delays Medicaid Work Requirement Enforcement by 6 Months After Court Loss
Updated
Updated · The New York Times · Nov 13
Trump Administration Delays Medicaid Work Requirement Enforcement by 6 Months After Court Loss
3 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Nov 13
Summary
States can wait until July to cut off Medicaid for adults who fail the new work rules, pushing back enforcement less than two months before the Jan. 1 start date.
A recent court defeat and states' struggles to build costly systems to track enrollees' work hours drove the delay, though federal officials still want eligibility checks to begin in January.
The 2025 law requires certain adults to document 80 hours a month of work, school or volunteering, and the Congressional Budget Office estimated it would leave 5 million more Americans uninsured over the next few years.
A federal judge had already granted 25 states and Washington, D.C., a six-month reprieve on part of the policy, while Nebraska and Montana started early; Nebraska says more than 1,700 people have already lost or been denied coverage.
The setback weakens a signature Republican Medicaid overhaul just as Democrats prepare to retake the House in January and plan an early vote to reverse the requirement.