State Medicaid officials announced their revised plans for KanCare, the privatized Medicaid program launched by Gov. Sam Brownback in 2013, and it has a “legally questionable” work requirement for those receiving benefits.
The state agencies that oversee the private contractors that manage the program released a draft of the plan they intend to submit for federal approval after a public comment period that runs through November. The system, which covers 425,000 low-income, disabled or elderly Kansans, has been plagued with problems, which prompted federal officials to initially deny the state’s request for a one-year extension of the current program to allow more time for the development and implementation of KanCare 2.0.
Federal officials approved the extension in early October based on the state’s promise to implement a corrective action plan.
In addition to questioning the administration’s ability to implement the revised KanCare 2.0, advocates are objecting to a proposed change that would require approximately 12,000 non-disabled recipients to work or participate in job training to maintain their benefits. Federal officials have historically rejected such work requirements, but several states are now pursuing them in the belief that the Trump administration will approve them.
The intention of work requirement is “to promote the highest level of member independence,” according to the KanCare 2.0 plan.
Non-disabled adults in families receiving cash assistance under the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, or TANF, program already must comply with the requirement.
Work requirements are “legally questionable,” said David Jordan, director of the Alliance for a Healthy Kansas, a nonprofit lobbying organization primary focused on expanding KanCare eligibility.
Pregnant women, individuals with physical or intellectual disabilities, and low-income parents with children under the age of 6 would be exempt from the requirement.