The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services’ decision to grant Ohio’s work requirement request could boost Medicaid recipients’ earnings, proponents say, while critics say the decision could cost 36,000 Ohioans their access to healthcare.
The federal agency last week granted a waiver for Ohio, allowing the state to require able-bodied Medicaid expansion recipients to work at least 20 hours per week in exchange for coverage. Recipients can receive an exemption from the work requirement for several reasons, including if enrolled in a worker training or drug treatment program.
Ohio’s Medicaid expansion includes about 711,000 adults, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation. An August 2018 report from the Ohio Department of Medicaid found 95 percent of the Medicaid expansion population in Ohio either meets the work requirement or is eligible for an exemption, meaning roughly 36,000 Ohioans could lose their coverage.
Click here to read the full story.
