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Today President Biden directed federal agencies to "reconsider rules and other policies that limit Americans’ access to health care, and consider actions that will protect and strengthen that access." (Thread) https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2021/01/28/fact-sheet-president-biden-to-sign-executive-orders-strengthening-americans-access-to-quality-affordable-health-care/
Specifically, agencies are directed to re-examine policies including "Demonstrations and waivers under #Medicaid and the #ACA that may reduce coverage or undermine the programs, including work requirements."
HHS should act quickly to rescind the Trump Administration's policy encouraging states to take #Medicaid away from people who don't meet work requirements and revoke approval for those state policies where they are in effect.
The Trump Admin approved work requirements in 13 states. Only Arkansas fully implemented its demonstration (until a federal court struck it down). In the seven months that the AR policy was in effect, more than 18,000 people — nearly 1 in 4 of those subject to it — lost coverage.
Other states would also have seen large coverage losses if they had fully implemented similar policies. New Hampshire was on track to take coverage from 17,000 people — about 40% of those subject to the rules — before bipartisan state policymakers halted the policy.
Similarly, 80,000 Michiganders — nearly 1 in 3 of those subject to work requirements — were in danger of losing coverage if a court hadn’t stopped the policy. https://www.cbpp.org/health/states-experiences-confirming-harmful-effects-of-medicaid-work-requirements
Large coverage losses are unavoidable under these policies. People with disabilities and other serious health needs — especially mental health conditions or substance use disorders — lose coverage because they struggle with paperwork to claim exemptions. https://www.cbpp.org/research/health/medicaid-work-requirements-cant-be-fixed
Working people lose coverage due to both paperwork barriers and the nature of low-wage work, like fluctuating hours. That’s why nearly half of working low-income adults wouldn’t be able to meet work requirements. https://www.cbpp.org/research/health/taking-away-medicaid-for-not-meeting-work-requirements-harms-low-wage-workers
Taking away coverage also fails to help people find and keep jobs. One study found evidence that people losing Medicaid under Arkansas’ policy became uninsured, but no evidence that the policy increased employment. https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMsr1901772
That’s likely because #Medicaid supports work: most people gaining coverage in Michigan and Ohio through the Affordable Care Act’s Medicaid expansion say the coverage made it easier for them to work or look for work. https://www.cbpp.org/medicaid-expansion-enrollees-report-coverage-helps-them-work-and-look-for-work-5
