Work requirements for Medicaid make sense

I believe it is important maintain a safety net of programs to help the most vulnerable, most impoverished families in Missouri obtain basic needs as they work their way toward independence. However, it is also important these programs remain just that — a safety net — rather than becoming a way of life or they will be unsustainable.

Nowhere is that clearer than in Missouri HealthNet, our state’s Medicaid program. Year after year, expenses for this program have grown and it has now surpassed every other item in the budget to become our state’s largest expense. Because of this massive cost, the Social Services budget for fiscal year 2019 — at $9.3 billion — was larger than the budgets for the Departments of Education, Transportation and Economic Development combined.

This is a rate that simply cannot be sustained. A program meant to be a safety net to help the most underprivileged people in our state has grown to the point it is taking money away from fundamental governmental services such as educating children and maintaining our roads.

One of the goals of the Medicaid program is to “promote upward mobility, greater independence, and improved quality of life,” but we risk doing the opposite if we do not make changes to end the cycle of dependency.

By adopting commonsense work requirements as in Sen. David Sater’s Senate Bill 76, we can encourage the many working-age, able-bodied individuals in the Medicaid program to seek a better life for their families by pursuing work.

This bill is not a heavy-handed, punitive measure. It contains a large number of exemptions to ensure only those who can work but choose not to are required to comply. Moreover, it provides alternatives for those who cannot find jobs, allowing these individuals to pursue educational opportunities (to prepare them for higher-paying jobs) or engage in community volunteer work.

The threshold for compliance is also eminently reasonable, with only 80 hours of work, school or volunteering required per month for an individual to remain eligible for the program. That is just two weeks of full-time work per month.

By adopting this simple proposal, we can encourage more people to seek a way out of the cycle of poverty, become independent and build a better life for their families.

It is my hope we are able to bring this bill to the floor for a vote and pass it in the coming weeks, as I believe this is a discussion we need to have. This will help lift people from dependency and ensure the Medicaid program remains a sustainable safety net for those who are most in need.

Wayne Wallingford (R-Cape Girardeau) represents District 27 in the Missouri Senate.