(Aug. 3 print edition)
Good news: Louisiana is better situated than almost every other state to implement new work requirements for Medicaid and food stamps.
Still, at an individual level, misplaced fears remain that the new work requirements and related paperwork burdens will be particularly devastating for Louisiana’s unusually large percentage of low-income residents.
Part of the fear was stoked by an Urban Institute study released in May — before some crucial provisions for Louisiana were included in the bill — predicting that some 139,000 Louisiana adults could lose coverage in the first year alone.
Now that proverbial smoke is clearing, though, the picture is much better.
As it turns out, states will have a grace period all the way to the end of 2026 to implement the work requirements for both Medicaid and for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (still colloquially known as “food stamps”) — and states may be granted an extension of another year by federal officials if they meet certain conditions. A year and a half (at least) is plenty of time to create efficient service-delivery systems.
Here, though, is where Louisiana has a particular advantage. In June, Gov. Jeff Landry signed the “One Door” bill, an initiative of the Pelican Institute think tank that was passed unanimously by both chambers of the Louisiana Legislature in response to Landry’s request. The Bayou State thus becomes the nation’s second (after Utah) to provide a single point of entry for individuals seeking all the major types of public assistance. Instead of filling out multiple forms at multiple offices, needy Louisianans will go to one place where one assigned caseworker will help them navigate the various systems to figure out which forms of help they qualify for and how to secure that assistance.
So, whether it is SNAP, Medicaid, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (what once was known as traditional “welfare”), housing assistance or job training, the paperwork and bureaucratic rigmarole will be reduced to a minimum.
Meanwhile, the whole point of the “job requirements” is to be helpful, not harmful…. [The full column is at this link.]
