Judge Blocks Trump Administration Medicaid Work Requirement Rule

US District Judge Richard Stearns blocked the Trump administration from enforcing a rule that narrowed medical exceptions for Medicaid work requirements. The rule, issued in June by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, aimed to implement the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which mandates that adults aged 19-64 complete 80 hours of monthly work or community engagement, or maintain half-time education enrollment starting January 1, 2027.

Ruling in favor of 25 states and the District of Columbia, Stearns found that the agency unlawfully limited the definition of medically frail by requiring that a condition significantly impair an individual's ability to comply. He stated that enforcing this definition "may lead to the disenrollment of otherwise eligible vulnerable individuals relying on Medicaid coverage for continuity of care."

While the judge invalidated the specific definition of medical frailty, he upheld other challenged provisions brought by Democratic-led states, including California, Massachusetts, and New Jersey.