Work Requirements: The Deliberate Tear in Medicaid's Safety Net

Work requirements: The deliberate tear in Medicaid's safety net

With the longest U.S. government shutdown now over, the One Big Beautiful Bill (BBB) Medicaid work requirements are moving forward, with plans to take effect in January 2027. While policymakers assure work requirements will promote responsibility among able-bodied adults, one thing remains clear: many politicians do not know what disability actually looks like.  Elizabeth Caldwell At the free clinic where I used to volunteer, I met a patient wh…

Medicaid work rules exempt the 'medically frail.' Deciding who qualifies is tricky.

By Samantha Liss and Sam Whitehead for KFF Eliza Brader worries she soon will need to prove she’s working to continue receiving Medicaid health coverage. She doesn’t think she should have to. The 27-year-old resident of Bloomington, Indiana, has a pacemaker and a painful joint disease. She also has fused vertebrae in her neck from a spinal injury, preventing her from turning her head. Indiana’s Medicaid agency currently considers Brader “medical…