Kentucky governor cancels some Medicaid benefits after judge blocks work requirements

Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin (R) followed through with a threat to make cuts to Medicaid benefits if the state was not allowed to implement work requirements for able-bodied adult recipients, the Courier Journal reported.

Just two days after a federal judge blocked Bevin’s work requirement plan, the administration cut dental and vision benefits for almost half a million Kentucky residents.

“This is an unfortunate consequence of the judge’s ruling,” Doug Hogan, communications director for the Cabinet of Health and Family Services, wrote in an email.

What’s the story?

Bevin is an opponent of the Medicaid expansion allowed by Obamacare, which his Democratic predecessor took advantage of.

The governor has said the current cost of Medicaid in Kentucky is unsustainable, so he wants to implement work requirements for able-bodied adults to help ensure that only those who truly need Medicaid are enrolled in the program.

Kentucky became the first state to receive Trump administration's approval to implement work requirements, but Bevin’s plan was challenged in court and ultimately blocked by a federal judge who tasked the state with more carefully assessing the plan within the boundaries of the law.

The decision to cut the dental and vision benefits for thousands is the Bevin administration’s response to the judge’s ruling, according to Hogan.

“When Kentucky HEALTH was struck down by the court, the ‘My Rewards Account program was invalidated, meaning there is no longer a legal mechanism in place to pay for dental and vision coverage for about 460,000 beneficiaries who have been placed in the Alternative Benefit Plan,” Hogan wrote in an email. “As such, they no longer have access to dental and vision coverage as a result of the court’s ruling."

Is this legal?

At a news conference Monday, some Democrats said they doubt that the cuts were legal, and expressed concern over what state Rep. Joni Jenkins (D) called “rash decisions.”

"He said he wants to take dental and vision coverage away,” Democratic state Rep. John Yarmouth. “We don’t think that’s legal either."

(H/T: The Hill)