Washington Post

By: Colby Itkowitz

Last month, there was a flurry of headlines when the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services reopened Kentucky’s Medicaid work requirements waiver for public comment after a federal judge sent the state’s proposal back to the agency for further review.

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Mississippi also removed language from its waiver related to the state’s desire to save money. These waivers are designed for states to propose new concepts for their Medicaid programs, not as a way for the state to control costs. Joan Alker, a Georgetown University public-policy professor who follows these waivers very closely, believes the changes are an attempt to make the plan more palatable, so the federal government can reasonably approve it. “To me,” she said, “the Trump administration is looking for way to get to yes on these proposals.”

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