A Massachusetts Model for Medicaid Work Requirements

This new report from Boston Indicators, the research center at the Boston Foundation, and the Center for State Policy Analysis at Tufts University’s Jonathan M. Tisch College of Civic Life, finds that strategic decisions made between now and next January will play a determining role in how much federal Medicaid changes will affect enrollees in the state’s MassHealth insurance plan. The report explores the potential impact of new Medicaid work and eligibility requirements on the program, and lays out strategies for a new model that helps minimize the number of Mass. residents losing coverage.

Using lessons learned from other states’ experiences with implementing more stringent Medicaid requirements, the report lays out four suggested steps:

1. Use our discretion wisely.
2. Automate everything we can—exemptions, work requirements, income checks.
3. Make verifications and attestations as easy as possible.
4. Build a statewide ground game to reach the most vulnerable.

Download and learn more about the report at Boston Indicators.