Work requirements expected to disenroll 2 million patients with asthma from Medicaid
Fact checked by Kristen Dowd
ORLANDO — Work requirements mandated by the One Big Beautiful Bill Act threaten to disenroll more than 2 million patients with asthma from Medicaid, according to data presented at the American Thoracic Society International Conference.
“The study is part of our effort to better understand the consequences of upcoming sweeping changes to Medicaid policy on patients with chronic respiratory disease,” Darshali Vyas, MD, pulmonary and critical care fellow at the Smith Center for Outcomes Research, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, said during her presentation.
Noting that disruptions in access to health care are especially challenging for patients with asthma, Vyas said that good asthma control requires consistent access to controller medications, rescue inhalers, outpatient follow-up and timely exacerbation care.
“Even short interruptions in health care access can lead to worsening asthma outcomes and hospitalizations,” she said.
Also known as HR1, the Big Beautiful Bill will require adult Medicaid beneficiaries to prove that they work 80 hours a month or more to maintain their coverage beginning in January 2027.
“Despite the broad, sweeping nature of these reforms, as states start to implement these in the coming year, little is known about how patients with pulmonary disease will be impacted,” Vyas said.
Vyas and her colleagues sought to determine how many patients with asthma who are on Medicaid do not meet these requirements and will be at risk for disenrollment, in addition to determining their health needs and morbidity related to asthma.
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