Federal shutdown brings chaos to legal fight over Bevin’s plan for Kentucky Medicaid
Attorneys for the federal government have asked to postpone a lawsuit that could decide the fate of Kentucky’s $9.7 billion-a-year Medicaid program and the tougher eligibility rules that Gov. Matt Bevin seeks to impose, because the partial government shutdown cut off their salaries nearly a month ago.
However, U.S. District Judge James Boasberg in Washington indicated Thursday that he’s inclined to only grant one-week delays in briefing deadlines in the case, to give the unpaid lawyers some breathing room, unless the state of Kentucky is willing to postpone changes to Medicaid that are scheduled to begin April 1.
Postponing the changes is not an option, state officials say.
“The Kentucky Department for Medicaid Services will continue to work toward implementation of the Kentucky HEALTH waiver on April 1,” Health and Family Services Secretary Adam Meier said Friday.
“Kentuckians, and specifically our Medicaid members, deserve a Medicaid program that will improve health outcomes and provide paths for employability, long-term stability, and future success while also ensuring the long-term sustainability of Medicaid for those who need it most,” Meier said.
On Monday, 16 Kentucky Medicaid recipients filed an amended lawsuit against the federal government to challenge Bevin’s Kentucky HEALTH initiative that would add work requirements, premiums, coverage lock-out periods and reporting duties for able-bodied adults on Medicaid. The federal government twice has approved Bevin’s plan, most recently in November.
An earlier version of the suit last year successfully blocked Bevin’s first attempt to stiffen eligibility requirements for able-bodied adults. The plaintiffs asked this week for summary judgment on their amended complaint, arguing that Bevin’s original version of Kentucky HEALTH, which Boasberg last June called “arbitrary and capricious,” essentially was the same as his current plan.
But the U.S. Department of Justice approached Boasberg Tuesday about putting the case on indefinite hold.
Along with much of the federal government, the department stopped being funded Dec. 21 because of a stalemate between President Trump and Congress over Trump’s demand for a $5.7 billion wall along the Mexican border. And the department is who represents the federal government in such matters in court — when it’s paid.
“Absent an appropriation, Department of Justice attorneys are prohibited from working, even on a voluntary basis, except in very limited circumstances,” Assistant Attorney General Joseph Hunt wrote in his motion requesting a stay.
In their response motions, the Medicaid recipients and Bevin’s office both protested putting the case on hold, noting that Kentucky HEALTH is scheduled to begin April 1. As a compromise, they said, they would not oppose a delayed briefing schedule that gives more time to harried attorneys for the federal government, as long as the case keeps moving forward.
“The commonwealth prefers that this action, and any appeal, be resolved sooner rather than later,” wrote Matthew Kuhn, a lawyer for Bevin.
Boasberg entered a brief order Thursday indicating that he is inclined to only delay the deadlines in the case by one week unless Kentucky agrees to postpone its implementation of the Kentucky HEALTH initiative.
A larger problem is looming. The federal court system is preparing to burn through its current reserve funds within two weeks if the shutdown does not end, The New York Times reported Friday. When the courts’ roughly 33,000 employees are furloughed, the judicial branch will be reduced to “mission critical” operations, putting most cases on hold, the Times said.
More than 1.3 million Kentuckians were enrolled in Medicaid last fall, about 30 percent of the state’s population.
Bevin has promoted Kentucky HEALTH by saying that able-bodied adults on Medicaid will be healthier if they are engaged in their communities as workers, volunteers or students, and if they contribute toward the cost of their care. Monthly premiums would begin at $1 to $15, eventually topping out at $37.50.
Opponents say an estimated 95,000 people will lose their Medicaid coverage in the first five years under Kentucky HEALTH using the state’s own figures. Many Kentuckians will have difficulty complying with monthly reporting requirements and finding 80 hours of work or volunteer duty every month, especially in rural parts of the state with no public transportation, these critics say.
This story was originally published January 18, 2019 at 10:28 AM.
