Myths About The Medicaid Expansion And The ‘Able-Bodied’

A conservative critique of the Affordable Care Act’s (ACA’s) expansion of Medicaid eligibility is that it helps adults who are “able-bodied” and may discourage them from working. For example, a policy summary released by House Republicans proposes that “Obamacare’s Medicaid expansion for able-bodied adults [should] be repealed in its current form” (emphasis added). Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson has declared that if people are not willing to work and are “able-bodied, they ought to be kicked off the system.” In fact, the great majority of adults covered by the Medicaid expansion are in ill health or are already working, in school, or looking for work. This false understanding of Medicaid recipients and their health insurance options has already influenced policymaking at the state level. For example, Arizona plans to seek a Medicaid waiver to limit able-bodied adults to a maximum of five years lifetime coverage and impose work requirements during that period. Similar waiver proposals have been consistently rejected in the past because they are contrary to the statutory objectives of Medicaid, which has never imposed lifetime limits or work requirements. But there is a risk that such a waiver might be approved in today’s policy environment. These policy ideas stem from a serious misunderstanding about Medicaid recipients and a flawed belief that employment effectively assures health insurance coverage. In reality, only a small share of the adults covered ...
Source: Health Affairs Blog - Category: Health Management Authors: Tags: Following the ACA Insurance and Coverage Medicaid and CHIP Quality ACA repeal and replace Arizona Medicaid expansion medicaid expansion states Source Type: blogs