Feds OK Ohio Medicaid work reporting requirement

The federal government approved a request from Ohio to require Medicaid expansion enrollees to prove they’ve worked 20 hours a week to receive health care, the state announced Friday afternoon (Source: “Federal government approves Ohio Medicaid work requirements,” Cleveland Plain Dealer, March 15, 2019).

Lt. Gov. Jon Husted said in an interview Friday afternoon that there isn’t a specific timeframe yet for when Medicaid expansion enrollees must begin demonstrating to the state that they’re working, going to school or exempted from the requirement, since the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS)  just OK’d the state’s request.

CMS noted that Ohio is the ninth state to receive approval to require Medicaid enrollees work. The Trump administration has been more receptive to the idea than that of former President Barack Obama.

According to the Ohio Department of Medicaid, 58 percent of expansion enrollees already work, but they are low-wage jobs that don’t offer health care. As of November, 2.8 million people were enrolled in Medicaid. About 690,000 were part of the Medicaid expansion group.