Study: 48K Kentuckians At Risk Of Losing Medicaid Under Bevin Work Requirements

“The study was conducted in part by Atheendar Venkataramani, who’s on the team from the University of Pennsylvania that will analyze real-time data if the Medicaid changes take effect. He said there’s mixed research on whether work requirements in other welfare programs reduce poverty rates and get people into better-paying jobs. But there’s a lot of interest in how Kentucky’s program will impact enrollees.

‘It’s an open question in the Medicaid program as to whether it’ll achieve this specific objective or not,’ Venkatarmani said.

Venkatarmani and the other study authors analyzed actual data from the Kentucky Medicaid system in February 2018. Then, 9,000 Medicaid enrollees were surveyed between May and September 2018 and asked about their work, volunteer and other activities. Researchers extrapolated those findings to the 330,075 Medicaid enrollees that were in the program in February.

They found a large portion would have been exempt because they were already working, were in school or were primary caregivers. About a third of the people had SNAP, otherwise known as food stamps, or cash assistance program TANF, and would be excluded. That’s because both programs already have a similar work requirement program.

That left the 48,427 people who weren’t working or volunteering and didn’t qualify for any other kind of exemption. These people would have been at risk of losing coverage if the community engagement requirement had gone into effect.”