Those targeted by Trump administration-backed Medicaid work requirements tend to be poor Americans already struggling to find a job due to mental and physical health issues or lack of a high school diploma.

A new analysis out last week from the Urban Institute shows those that are potentially not exempt from Medicaid work rules “disproportionately face barriers to sustained employment.” The Urban Institute research, which is funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, examined data from a survey of 1,180 nondisabled Medicaid recipients.

“These work patterns and employment barriers underscore the risk of coverage losses under work requirements and suggest investments in education, training, other employment services, and work supports are needed to improve employment outcomes,” Urban Institute researcher Michael Karpman wrote in his report.

Medicaid work requirements are being pushed by the Trump administration and more states generally led by Republican governors are trying to implement them. Since January of 2018, the Trump administration has granted waivers allowing nine states to adopt work requirements for Medicaid patients who generally have to “participate in work-related activities for 20 hours per week or 80 hours per month” to qualify for health insurance, researchers said.

“The analysis finds that both nonexempt and exempt Medicaid enrollees are more likely than privately insured adults to face potential employment barriers, such as lack of a high school degree, limited English proficiency, physical and mental health issues, and residence in a high-unemployment neighborhood,” the Urban Institute report said. “Nonexempt enrollees are also more likely than both exempt enrollees and privately insured adults to report multiple chronic health conditions, lack of household internet access, limited transportation access, and criminal records.”

Several studies have shown most Medicaid recipients are already working and these work requirements add layers of bureaucracy that frustrates people who decided not to sign up for Medicaid. Other studies have shown Medicaid work requirements add administrative costs and therefore hurt taxpayers in states that have implemented them.

It’s unclear whether the Trump administration’s effort to add work requirements to Medicaid across the country is legal, let alone lead to improved employment.

“In March 2019, a federal court vacated the approval of waivers in Arkansas and Kentucky, ruling that the approvals did not address how the waivers would promote Medicaid’s core objective of providing medical assistance,” the Urban Institute report said. “However, the administration has appealed both rulings and approved a new waiver that included work requirements as part of a partial Medicaid expansion in Utah shortly after the decisions.”

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How Trump’s Medicaid Work Rules Make It More Difficult To Find A Job – Forbes