Rosendale Introduces Legislation To Implement Medicaid Work Requirements

Last week, U.S. Rep. Matt Rosendale (MT-02) introduced the Path to Independence Act. His new legislation will allow states to impose work requirements on able-bodied adults enrolled in Medicaid to help lift millions off government reliance and into self-sufficiency.

Under current law and unlike most other welfare programs, the Medicaid program has no mandated work requirement.

Thirteen states received approval under President Trump to implement work requirements for their Medicaid programs, but the Biden administration has since revoked all existing waivers and will most likely block any new waiver requests.

Ensuring each state can define and apply its own work requirements will protect Medicaid for those truly in need. Work requirements have successfully moved individuals from welfare to work, breaking the cycle of government dependency.

“The federal government should never dictate how sovereign states spend their money,” said Rosendale. “My Path to Independence Act will prevent state governments from going broke while encouraging individuals to be financially independent and end their reliance on government handouts. The Biden-Harris administration should have never revoked the state’s ability to set work requirements in the first place and this bill establishes a much-needed return to sanity.”

“The Path to Independence Act would guide individuals and taxpayer-funded programs down a better road — one that harnesses the power of work to change lives and fix broken budgets,” said Mimi Singleton, Federal Affairs Director at the Foundation for Government Accountability. “Allowing states to implement a work requirement for able-bodied adults is the best way to quickly prioritize limited resources to the truly needy and help those who can work escape a welfare program locking them in government dependence. This bill is a necessary and powerful return to a fundamentally better America, putting our country and people on a path towards a more independent and prosperous future.”

Medicaid was created in the 1960s to serve needy populations, such as low-income children, pregnant women, and people with disabilities. In 2000, there were 34 million Americans on Medicaid, and 2023 data says that number has skyrocketed to 96 million.

The labor force participation rate in 2000 was 67.1% and is currently 62.6%. As the number of people on Medicaid has increased, the labor force participation rate has decreased.

In Montana in 2015, the year before Montana expanded Medicaid spending, spending on Medicaid in Montana represented approximately 18 percent, and in 2022, Medicaid spending has accounted for over 25 percent of total state spending. The increase in Medicaid spending has crowded out key state priorities.