Federal judge again blocks new Medicaid rules in Kentucky
A federal judge has once again blocked new rules for Kentucky’s Medicaid program that would require those seeking to keep their health benefits to either get a job, go to school or volunteer.
The ruling by U.S. District Judge James E. Boasberg, in Washington, D.C., posed a new setback to Republican Gov. Matt Bevin’s efforts to overhaul the state’s Medicaid program after its dramatic expansion under the federal health care overhaul.
Bevin has vowed to end Medicaid benefits for more than 400,000 people in Kentucky if the courts ultimately block his proposed rules. He says the state can’t afford to keep paying its share for that many people. It’s one reason the Trump administration argued it was important to approve the new rules.
But Boasberg said that argument “makes little sense.” He noted if all it took for a state to get new Medicaid rules was to threaten to end coverage, then the federal government would be powerless to stop any proposed rule changes.
Read more: https://www.state-journal.com/2019/03/27/federal-judge-again-blocks-new-medicaid-rules-in-kentucky/