Naples, FL — Today, the Trump administration approved Wisconsin’s request to implement work requirements for able-bodied adults in Medicaid. With this approval, Wisconsin becomes the latest state to require able-bodied adults on Medicaid to work, train, or volunteer at least part-time to receive benefits.
Since January, following new guidance from the Trump administration, more than a dozen states have requested to implement commonsense work requirements in Medicaid.
Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker has been a leader in welfare reform by advancing policies that reduce dependency and promote independence for able-bodied adults within the state. Under Gov. Walker’s leadership, Wisconsin has restored and expanded work requirements for able-bodied adults on food stamps, cracked down on fraud and abuse, strengthened child support enforcement, and implemented reforms to preserve resources for the truly needy.
The approval of Wisconsin’s Medicaid work requirement waiver builds on the state’s commitment to policies that reduce dependency and promote work. After work requirements were implemented in other welfare programs, able-bodied adults went back to work in over 600 diverse industries. Their incomes doubled, on average, and their time spent on welfare was cut in half.
“Wisconsin has been a leader in welfare reforms that reduce dependency and protect the truly needy, and this Medicaid work requirement builds on Gov. Walker’s commitment to help move thousands of people off the sidelines,” said Tarren Bragdon, President and CEO of the Foundation for Government Accountability. “We applaud the Walker administration for its commitment to commonsense policies that promote work and independence.”
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The Foundation for Government Accountability is a non-profit, multi-state think tank that specializes in health care, welfare, and work reform. To learn more, visit TheFGA.org.