White House undeterred when it comes to Medicaid work requirement

WASHINGTON — Trump administration officials, whose push to impose work requirements on Medicaid beneficiaries was dealt a blow by a federal judge in June, say they have found a way around the ruling and will continue to allow states to put the restrictions in place.

The judge, James E. Boasberg of U.S. District Court in Washington, stopped a Kentucky plan to introduce the work requirements after finding that the secretary of health and human services had failed to consider the state’s estimate that the new rules would cause 95,000 low-income people to lose Medicaid coverage. Limiting access to medical assistance does not promote the objectives of the Medicaid program, he said.

But administration officials said they could sidestep the ruling by providing a better explanation of the rationale for work requirements. The officials have a narrow reading of Boasberg’s decision, saying he faulted them for failing to follow proper procedure. They can satisfy his concerns, they say, by compiling a fuller record.

The Trump administration said it was “inviting additional comments” on Kentucky’s proposal, to hear what people had to say in the wake of the court decision. The deadline for public comments is next Saturday.

Opponents of work requirements say they unfairly punish people who face barriers to employment.