Medicaid, Donald Trump and GOP
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The prospect of a work requirement for able-bodied Medicaid recipients is sparking fears. The measure is part of a sweeping federal spending bill supported by President Donald Trump that has cleared the House and is now being considered by the Senate.
Proposed changes have reportedly angered some House Representatives, and differing views on the legislation could make passing Trump's bill difficult.
Medicaid expansion was a recognition that low-income Americans of all ages need, and deserve, health insurance, and that such a step is essential to a properly functioning health care system. Forcing states to knock down the very health equity foundation they have built would truly be a “shift in kind.
A new Senate plan would tie Medicaid to 80-hour work requirements. Up to 5 million Americans could lose coverage, CBO warns.
Millions of Americans could lose Medicaid coverage because of cutbacks, but experts warn of the legislation's complexity.
Medicaid work requirements are part of the version of President Donald Trump's "Big Beautiful Bill" that cleared the House last month and is now up for consideration in the Senate. Trump is seeking to have it passed by July 4.
His comments are the latest in a familiar debate, as supporters cite work requirements as a path out of poverty, while critics decry the measures as punitive barriers to care. Both sides are missing crucial elements that could deliver the most meaningful safety net reform in a generation. The Senate should seize the opportunity.
As one reader writes, the "old trope of work-or-volunteer remedies" recalls the “welfare queen” stereotype of 40 years ago, and "will not result in real reform."
Many of the Republicans pushing for Medicaid work requirements — permanent program cuts that will strip up to 14 million people of their health care coverage — likely have no idea what it takes to comply with them.
Gov. Kim Reynolds signed a law June 6 requiring tens of thousands of Iowans on Medicaid to work or lose their health care coverage.
Several provisions in the bill passed by House Republicans last month, including Medicaid work requirements, would lead to the loss of coverage for millions of people.
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