Hundreds of thousands of Connecticut Medicaid recipients must comply with new federal work requirements starting January 1, or risk losing health coverage. The requirements, part of a federal budget bill enacted last July, mandate that Medicaid recipients work 80 hours per month, or meet that standard through some combination of work, job training, volunteering, and enrollment in higher education, technical school, or a high school equivalency program.
Exemptions and Assistance
Individuals can fulfill the work requirement by earning at least 80 times the federal hourly minimum wage, which currently represents an income of $580 per month. The law provides exemptions for individuals facing “medical frailty,” including patients suffering from blindness, disabilities, chronic substance use disorders, serious mental illness, and other medical conditions, including cancer and HIV. Connecticut social services officials estimate that roughly 57,000 of the 316,000 HUSKY D recipients are exempt from work requirements due to the “medical frailty” provision.
Recognizing the complexity of the new system, Connecticut social services officials will spend the coming months helping HUSKY D recipients preserve their eligibility. The Department of Social Services has an online “toolkit” that outlines key changes in federal policy, and the state is working with regional, nonprofit community action agencies to provide free assistance to HUSKY D recipients.
Original reporting: The Connecticut Mirror — read the source article.
