Judge blocks Trump administration's Medicaid work requirement rule forcing proof of medical frailty

Key Points:

• A federal judge ruled that chronically ill Medicaid recipients cannot be required to meet new work requirement rules to qualify for "medically frail" exemptions, blocking stricter federal guidance from the Trump administration.
• The ruling sided with a coalition of 25 states and the District of Columbia that argued the new Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) rule went beyond the law by imposing additional criteria on medically frail individuals.
• While the judge made it easier for some Medicaid recipients to obtain exemptions, he did not strike down the work requirements themselves, which mandate expansion enrollees aged 19 to 64 to work or engage in community service for at least 80 hours a month starting January 2025.
• The judge upheld other federal restrictions, including rejecting medical frailty proof older than one year and limiting self-attestation to once per enrollment period, citing the government's rationale as non-frivolous.
• These Medicaid changes are part of a broader 2025 tax and policy law affecting coverage for lower-income individuals in states that expanded Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act.