Fights over Medicaid work requirements head to court

The Trump administration is in federal court this morning defending new and proposed rules in two states that require Medicaid recipients to meet certain work requirements. Here’s what you need to know:

• Arkansas: Some 18,000 people have lost their coverage as a result of new work requirements that went into effect for most last June. The rules say those who work fewer than 80 hours per month for three consecutive months are denied benefits. A group of Arkansans who have lost or are at risk of losing coverage due to the new requirements are challenging the rule, but the government hopes to dismiss the case.
• Kentucky: Up to 136,000 people in the state may lose coverage if a similar rule goes into effect next month. The case was also challenged by Medicaid enrollees in Kentucky who say that the efforts to transform the Medicaid program "were arbitrary and capricious." National groups such as AARP and the American Medical Association have filed briefs supporting the plaintiffs' claims. 

On a related note, a new report funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation offers a broad look at who would be affected by SNAP work requirements that the USDA drafted last month. The agency has proposed limiting the number of areas that get exceptions to the rules based on high unemployment rates.