HHS Secretary Alex Azar approved Indiana's waiver request to impose work requirements on Medicaid enrollees Friday, according to The Hill.
The new requirements mandate Medicaid recipients be enrolled in school, work 20 hours a week or participate in job training. However, certain Medicaid recipients — such as the medically frail, pregnant and some primary caregivers — are exempt from the rule. Indiana officials expect 130,000 residents to be affected by the changes.
Mr. Azar said the new rules align with the administration's vision for Medicaid.
"Indiana's vision and ours goes beyond the provision of quality healthcare," said Mr. Azar, according to The Hill. "Work is a key component of well-being."
Opponents of Medicaid work requirements, such as Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., believe the move will limit many Indiana residents' access to coverage.
"Secretary Azar has given Indiana the greenlight to discriminate against low-income Americans who are just trying to stay healthy and get ahead," Mr. Wyden said in a statement provided to The Hill. "Policies that lock people out of the healthcare system for months at a time or place onerous barriers in the way of coverage do not make Medicaid better at providing healthcare."