Kentucky Is the First State to Require Medicaid Recipients to Work – Here’s What That Means

What’s going on?

The Trump administration has approved Kentucky’s plan to require some Medicaid recipients to work, making the Bluegrass State the first to necessitate work to qualify for Medicaid benefits.

How is Kentucky defining “work”?

Beginning in July, people on Medicaid aged 19 to 64 who are not disabled must put in 20 hours of work per week. Besides work hours, Kentucky will accept time spent volunteering, training for a job, searching for a job, going to class or caring for the elderly or disabled.

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Does every Medicaid recipient have to comply?

No. People exempt from the work requirement include “pregnant women, full-time students, primary caretakers of dependents and the chronically homeless,” according to the New York Times. People “deemed medically frail” are also excused.

How many people will this affect?

Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin’s administration expects around 350,000 people on Medicaid to be affected by the new guidelines; however, the administration also estimates that around half of those people are already working the required 20 hours per week.

Glenn’s take:

While critics are already slamming the new work requirements, Glenn thought it was reasonable to expect people to “better yourself in some way or another” in order to qualify for help.

This article was originally published on GlennBeck.com.


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