Judge Strikes Down Kentucky Work Requirement for Medicaid

A federal judge on Friday blocked Kentucky’s Medicaid waiver that would require recipients to “work, volunteer or train for a job as a condition of coverage,” The New York Times reports. Federal District Court Judge James Boasberg, an Obama appointee, said the requirement was “arbitrary and capricious,” because Kentucky did not consider how the requirement would “help the state furnish medical assistance to its citizens, a central objective of Medicaid.” Friday’s ruling is the first on the issue. Three other states have already received permission by the Trump administration to impose work requirements, and seven others have requesting the same permissions—opening up the possibility of more legal battles on this issue.