Under President Donald Trump’s major policy bill, the state will be required to implement work requirements for those on Medicaid by 2027. But state officials plan to apply this fall.
The state released a draft waiver asking for that approval.
Those on Medicaid expansion would be required to work or be engaged in community service 80 hours per month. Disabled or medically frail people will be exempted. There are exemptions for elderly, veteran and Indigenous populations as well.
The waiver also seeks to re-implement monthly premiums. The state stopped charging enrollees during the pandemic. That’s on top of co-payments required under the new federal law.
Heather O’Laughlin is the executive director of the Montana Budget and Policy Center.
“We had a number of Medicaid expansion enrollees lose coverage because they couldn’t afford to pay the premiums,” she said.
Enrollees would pay 2 percent of their income for the first three years. Premiums would ratchet up half a percent each year after that. Trump’s policy bill prohibits premiums starting in 2028. State officials say they will apply for an exemption.
The state is now taking public comment on the draft waiver.
