Gov. Chris Sununu’s administration is seeking to impose the harshest Medicaid work requirement in the country—resulting in hundreds, if not thousands, of Granite Staters losing their health care.
We can help stop this from happening, but we need to act now & speak out.
The Trump Administration is currently collecting comments on New Hampshire’s request to force a 100-hour-per-month work requirement to maintain eligibility for Medicaid. We must flood them with comments about why work requirements are harmful to some of our most vulnerable friends and neighbors.
Here’s the link to the website where you can post your comments starting today.
The deadline to comment is September 2.
See the bottom of this email for key talking points.
New Hampshire’s waiver also asks for permission to include assets tests and proof of citizenship—taking a page out of the Trump administration playbook to target rural farmers (who may be property rich and cash poor) and immigrants.
Most New Hampshire Medicaid Expansion recipients are already working, but some may have irregular hours because they are at the mercy of their employers or they work seasonal jobs. Others return to the workforce as soon as their health improves or a job becomes available.
Here’s what we can expect if this waiver is approved with these forced labor requirements: Arkansas recently implemented an 80 hour-a-month work requirement this year and after only two months, more than 5000 people were at risk of losing coverage—either because they did not work enough hours or did not have internet access and couldn’t report their hours.
New Hampshire’s Medicaid Expansion program is working just fine as is. Granite Staters don’t need more obstacles to health care.
Your comments are critical to protect people’s access to life-saving health care, as they can shape waiver approvals and can be used in court to stop implementation.
Access to health care is under attack around the country, and we can’t let it happen here in New Hampshire.
Click here and make your voice heard!
Facts about New Hampshire’s Medicaid program
Here is some information about New Hampshire’s Medicaid program to help craft your comments. If you have personal experience with Medicaid Expansion, irregular hours, seasonal employment, or limited access to the internet please share that experience in your comments.
- The program has provided access to health care to more than 100,000 New Hampshire residents since it began. Most have transitioned to other health plans. Only a small percentage have been enrolled in the program for the whole time.
- Of the 50,000 people who are currently enrolled in the program, most of them (65%) are employed. The rest are between jobs, caring for young children or other family members, or too ill to work.
- New Hampshire has many people who work in low-wage or seasonal jobs. People in the hospitality industry, food service, logging, farming, and construction jobs experience gaps in employment and many have irregular hours that they have no control over.
- Self-employed people may also experience months where they work many hours followed by months where they have no work.
- Monthly reporting means that a minor illness or other crisis spanning two months could result in loss of coverage.
- In some areas of the state employment opportunities, even as volunteers, do not exist and transportation is unavailable.
- Electronic reporting of work hours or conditions of exemption may prove difficult for people who can’t afford internet access or live in rural parts of the state where there is limited internet access.
- New Hampshire’s Medicaid Expansion program has been a great success. It should be allowed to continue without the added burden of work requirements.