Medicaid Archives - KFF Health News

A Shrinking Safety Net

Episode 456

July 23, 2026

A new report finds that participation in the federal food stamp program is down far more than was predicted when the Republican-led Congress approved cuts in 2025. That portends a similar fate for Medicaid, as states ready comparable changes. Margot Sanger-Katz of The New York Times, Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, and Joanne Kenen of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Politico Magazine join KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss the news. Also, as part of the “How Would You Fix It?” series, Rovner interviews GOP Sen. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, who chairs the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee.

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A woman sits at a kitchen table. On the table rests a caddy filled with several large pill bottles.

A Deloitte-Run System Denied Medicaid Benefits for Michigan’s Disabled. Now Trump’s Law Piles On.

Complex computer systems that decide whether people, including the disabled, get Medicaid benefits have a history of errors. Now changes to comply with Trump’s signature tax and domestic policy law are inundating those systems.

By Rachana Pradhan, Samantha Liss, and Kate Wells

July 21, 2026

A doctor holding a document speaks with a patient who is out of frame.

Doctors ‘Cringe’ at Possibility of Documenting Which Medicaid Enrollees Too Sick To Work

Final regulations on Medicaid work requirements say enrollees must regularly obtain documentation — possibly from medical professionals — to prove that they’re too sick to work. Doctors say the rules put them in a tough spot.

By Sam Whitehead

July 20, 2026

What the Health? From KFF Health News

States Start Their Medicaid Cuts

Episode 455

July 16, 2026

Most of the federal Medicaid cuts don’t take effect until 2027, but many states are already cutting budgets in anticipation of getting fewer health dollars from Washington. Meanwhile, Congress is back from break, but progress on legislative priorities remains slow. Anna Edney of Bloomberg News, Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, and Sandhya Raman of Bloomberg Law join KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more. And as part of the “How Would You Fix It?” series, Rovner interviews Elizabeth Mitchell of the Purchaser Business Group on Health.

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A high angle view of American dollar bills and coins with a stethoscope resting on top of them.

A Sales Tax on Doctor Visits and Medicine? In Missouri, Some Worry

A ballot measure to eliminate Missouri’s income tax would give the state legislature broad authority to levy new sales taxes to replace the lost revenue. Critics say that could mean adding a sales tax on medical services or prescription medicines. Those types of taxes are unusual, but not unheard of, in the U.S.

By Bram Sable-Smith

July 16, 2026

Facing Funding Losses, States Call Out Big Businesses With Employees on Medicaid

With the federal Medicaid work requirements looming in January, Democrats are considering state legislation to call out big companies that employ workers enrolled in the safety net health program. Business giants such as Amazon and Walmart said the figures are misleading.

By Jazmin Orozco Rodriguez

July 15, 2026

A woman with long brown hair stands beside a senior woman with short gray hair. Both are smiling happily towards the camera.

As GOP Cries Fraud, Newsom Backs Medicaid Spending on Housing and Food

Republicans say California’s use of Medicaid money for social services amounts to waste, fraud, and abuse. But even as Gov. Gavin Newsom voices concern about losing funding, he says he’s proud of the state’s holistic approach to caring for its sickest and most expensive patients.

By Angela Hart

July 13, 2026

A pair of gloved hands harvesting three red bell peppers.

They Harvest the Nation’s Food, but a New Rule May Strip Them of Health Insurance

New Medicaid work requirements could make a complex system even harder for farmworkers to navigate.

By Paula Andalo

July 10, 2026

A hand-drawn illustration in ink and watercolor of a woman sitting on a hospital bed that's floating out on a turbulent sea. She faces away from the viewer, silhouetted by a golden moon as lightning cracks in the distance. A crashing wave, reminiscent of Hokusai's "The Great Wave off Kanagawa" threatens to engulf her emergency bed.

PERSPECTIVE

My Search for a Psychiatric Bed in an Overburdened Health System

Over the past 70 years, the number of inpatient psychiatric beds has dropped dramatically, leaving many without critical care when they experience mental health crises. I was one of the lucky ones to get a bed — after 21 hours of waiting.

By Helen Santoro

July 9, 2026

A man with white hair stands behind a lectern with the seal of the President of the United States on it, and speaks into a microphone.

Health Hub

New Medicaid Work Rule Means More Opportunities To Lose Coverage

A work requirement is coming to Medicaid. Sam Whitehead tells WAMU’s “Health Hub” how to keep your coverage — and who’s exempt from the new rule.

By Sam Whitehead

July 6, 2026

Two images shown side by side: Xavier Becerra on the left, Steve Hilton on the right. The photos are from a gubernatorial debate.

In California Governor’s Race, Voters Face Stark Choice on Immigrant Healthcare

California’s next governor will face tough decisions on a highly controversial piece of healthcare policy: what to do about health coverage for the more than 1.4 million low-income residents without legal status. Democrat Xavier Becerra and Republican Steve Hilton present starkly different choices as public opinion wavers.

By Christine Mai-Duc

July 6, 2026

Two images shown side by side. On the left is incumbent Nevada Gov. Joe Lombardo, a Republican. On the right is his Democratic challenger, Nevada Attorney General Aaron Ford.

Priced Out

Affordable Healthcare Emerges as a Voter Priority in Purple Nevada

The Trump administration’s cuts to Medicaid and SNAP may complicate Republican Gov. Joe Lombardo’s reelection chances.

By Jazmin Orozco Rodriguez

July 1, 2026

What the Health? From KFF Health News

Trump Officials Still Delaying Funds

Episode 452

June 25, 2026

With the fiscal year mostly over, hundreds of millions of dollars in health-related grants approved by Congress still have not reached their designated recipients, with the Trump administration again delaying distribution. Meanwhile, on the fourth anniversary of the Supreme Court decision that allowed states to ban abortion, the number of abortions in the U.S. is actually rising. Maya Goldman of Axios, Joanne Kenen of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Politico Magazine, and Rachana Pradhan of KFF Health News join KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more.

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A photo of an emergency room parking lot.

Indiana Takes On Powerful Hospitals by Capping Prices They Charge Employers

“Government has to intervene, because healthcare is run like an unregulated utility,” Indiana’s GOP governor says of the state’s effort to regulate hospital prices.

By Phil Galewitz and Samantha Liss

June 22, 2026

A senior man with grey hair wearing a navy suit and red tie

Final Rules for Medicaid Work Requirements Are Out. Here’s What You Need To Know.

The Trump administration has laid out what millions of Americans on Medicaid must do to prove they’re working or completing other activities. Health policy researchers and consumer advocates say there are some important takeaways.

By Sam Whitehead

June 12, 2026

What the Health? From KFF Health News

The Drip, Drip, Drip of Declining Coverage

Episode 450

June 11, 2026

As predicted, the expiration of enhanced tax subsidies for Affordable Care Act health plans is causing many people to lose coverage for failing to make premium payments. Meanwhile, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. responded angrily to a New York Times article suggesting he’s not actively engaged in the work of his sprawling department. Lauren Weber of The Washington Post, Lizzy Lawrence of Stat, and Sandhya Raman of Bloomberg Law join KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews KFF’s Tricia Neuman, who is retiring this month as a senior vice president and the executive director of the Program on Medicare Policy.

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Two medical workers in blue scrubs walk down a hallway in a hospital.

Looming Medicaid Cuts Supercharge California’s Latest Labor-Industry Fight

One of California’s largest healthcare unions is sponsoring two initiatives that would regulate community clinics and cap executive and managerial pay at hospitals and physician groups. In the most recent eruption of a long-standing feud, the measures have drawn fierce opposition from a wide swath of the medical industry.

By Bernard J. Wolfson

June 10, 2026

A image of the healthcare.gov website on a laptop screen.

Health Hub

Millions of Kids Could Lose Insurance as GOP Healthcare Cuts Start To Bite

Big cuts to healthcare programs in the 2025 GOP budget law are creating an affordability crunch for many Americans: Higher health insurance premiums. Confusion about who Medicaid will cover under the new rules. KFF Health News chief Washington correspondent Julie Rovner explains how the changes could leave nearly 2 million children uninsured.

By Julie Rovner

June 5, 2026

What the Health? From KFF Health News

Medicaid Work Rules Surprise States

Episode 449

June 4, 2026

Adult Medicaid enrollees with serious health conditions may not be automatically exempt from new work rules, according to a new regulation from the Trump administration. Meanwhile, the administration is also proposing to give political appointees even more power over who gets health and science grant funding. Margot Sanger-Katz of The New York Times, Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, and Liz Essley Whyte of The Wall Street Journal join KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews KFF Health News’ Lauren Sausser, who wrote the latest “Bill of the Month.”

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