Able-bodied adults will have to work for Medicaid, under plan from Gov. Scott Walker, Trump

MADISON - Tens of thousands of needy but able-bodied adults in Wisconsin could have to work to qualify for state health coverage under a plan from Gov. Scott Walker that has won support from President Donald Trump's administration. 

Walker immediately praised the move, which he said would spur more Wisconsinites to work and which critics said would spur lawsuits. 

Seema Verma, head of the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, opened the way this week for states to require "able-bodied, working-age Medicaid beneficiaries" to participate in skills training, education, job search, volunteering or caregiving.  

“Medicaid needs to be more flexible so that states can best address the needs of this population," Verma said in a statement. "Our fundamental goal is to make a positive and lasting difference in the health and wellness of our beneficiaries."

Walker and his fellow GOP governors in nine other states have sought to impose work and training requirements on the Medicaid program known in Wisconsin as BadgerCare. But to do it they needed the backing of federal officials. 

Jon Peacock, research director of the advocacy group Kids Forward, said he expected the decision to spark a federal lawsuit from opponents. He said the deal would hurt needy college students and adults caring for elderly parents and would do less to get people working than addressing other problems like a lack of transportation. 

"If proponents of work requirements truly want to help people find work, they should invest in things like skills training and improved access to child care, rather than increasing red tape and making it harder for people to access health care," Peacock said. 

Democratic National Committee spokeswoman Mandy McClure blasted the proposals, calling them "inhumane." She said the vast majority of Medicaid recipients either work already or face an obstacle to employment such as a disability or advanced age.

"This is nothing but yet another excuse for Republicans to try to kick people off of their health insurance," McClure said. 

Walker and GOP lawmakers approved legislation last year to move forward with work and drug testing requirements, which together could affect a large number of state residents. Starting in April 2019, the changes could affect 148,000 childless adults in Wisconsin with incomes below the federal poverty level — $12,060 a year for a single adult.

The Trump administration put certain limits on Medicaid work requirements, saying states needed to exclude pregnant women, the disabled and the elderly and make allowances for recipients who are undergoing treatment for substance abuse. 

Walker's proposal appears to meet all or most of those requirements already, leaving the Wisconsin plan likely to win approval from the Trump administration in the coming weeks. But actually implementing the plan and overcoming any legal challenges to it could take considerably longer.

USA Today contributed to this report.