LANSING, MI (WKZO AM/FM) — U.S. District Judge James Boasberg has found that imposed work requirements for recipients of the Healthy Michigan Plan are unlawful.
Previously, Governor Gretchen Whitmer had been urging lawmakers to halt the passage of new Healthy Michigan Plan laws that were set to begin in January.
The new rules would have required some Healthy Michigan Plan recipients to work 20 hours a week or 80 a month. The policy change was established through a bill that was passed before Whitmer took office.
The rules ultimately went into effect on January 1st, but Whitmer had still filed a lawsuit against the measure. Similar measures had been imposed in the state of Arkansas, but were also deemed unlawful in a separate lawsuit last month.
“I am pleased that the court has taken action that will help Michigan provide affordable, high-quality access to health care,” Whitmer said in a statement. “This is great news for Michiganders, although it is not surprising given a previous federal court decision regarding Medicaid work requirements in Arkansas. While it’s unfortunate that Republicans in the Legislature created confusion and wasted tens of millions of taxpayer dollars by pressing forward with implementation of requirements that were clearly going to be thrown out by the courts, I look forward to working with the Legislature on a better way to promote work while protecting coverage.”
Since an agreement could not be reached before January 1st, mail was still sent out by the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) to alert citizens of the policy change.
Around 238,000 notices were sent to individuals, which Whitmer’s office says cost approximately $1 million a month. In all, around 80,000 citizens were at risk of losing health care.
“MDHHS has spent more than $30 million implementing requirements that created anxiety and churn for Healthy Michigan Plan enrollees and have now been deemed unlawful,” MDHHS Director Robert Gordon said. “We look forward to returning our team members’ focus to work that improves the health and wellbeing of Michiganders.”
Wednesday, Attorney General Dana Nessel also released a statement in regards to the verdict.
“We are grateful for Judge Boasberg’s swift decision today, which will ensure that Michigan won’t be throwing away taxpayer money to enforce unlawful requirements and cause confusion and concern for tens of thousands of Michigan beneficiaries whose health care coverage was in limbo,” Nessel said.
Senate Majority Leader Mike Shirkey, R-Clark Lake, is reportedly “disappointed” with the verdict, but will continue to work with Federal leaders in crafting a new policy.
