Medicaid Work Requirements: Forcing the 'Undeserving' into Labor
The NYT's explainer on Medicaid's new work requirement detailed how states plan to enforce it, focusing on exemptions and hours. What's left unsaid is the clear historical parallel: policies like this, from the 'deserving poor' rhetoric of Victorian England to Reagan's 'welfare queens,' have always been about shaming vulnerable populations while driving down wages for all. It's not about fiscal
responsibility; it's about shifting the burden and ensuring a reserve army of cheap labor for corporations, many of whom receive massive tax breaks. It also overlooks the fact that many Medicaid recipients already work, often in low-wage jobs with no benefits. One might wonder why the US can always find billions for overseas military adventures—like the $14 billion in supplementary aid to Israel
that passed with bipartisan support, largely driven by groups like AIPAC (which donated record amounts to politicians in 2022 )—but struggles to fund basic healthcare for its own citizens without attaching punitive conditions. It appears the 'work ethic' is only a moral imperative for those without lobbying power.