{"id":2591577,"date":"2026-04-16T13:43:01","date_gmt":"2026-04-16T17:43:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/ny-plans-to-circumvent-new-trump-medicaid-work-rules-by-having-people-work-to-teach-people-new-rules-were-getting-very-creative\/"},"modified":"2026-04-16T13:45:57","modified_gmt":"2026-04-16T17:45:57","slug":"ny-plans-to-circumvent-new-trump-medicaid-work-rules-by-having-people-work-to-teach-people-new-rules-were-getting-very-creative","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/ny-plans-to-circumvent-new-trump-medicaid-work-rules-by-having-people-work-to-teach-people-new-rules-were-getting-very-creative\/","title":{"rendered":"NY Plans to Circumvent New Trump Medicaid Work Rules By Having People &#8216;Work&#8217; to Teach People New Rules: &#8216;We&#8217;re Getting Very Creative&#8217;"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">44<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fny-plans-to-circumvent-new-trump-medicaid-work-rules-by-having-people-work-to-teach-people-new-rules-were-getting-very-creative%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2591577&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>An opinionated piece from The Western Journal critiques New York\u2019s handling of Medicaid work requirements under new federal rules, portraying officials as increasingly \u201ccreative\u201d in ways to keep people from <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/chelsea-handler-gets-blowback-for-blasting-chauvin-trial-as-pathetic-because-video-evidence-exists\/\" title=\"Chelsea Handler Gets Blowback For Blasting Chauvin Trial As \u2018Pathetic\u2019 Because Video Evidence Exists\">losing benefits<\/a>. It notes that,following the One Big Beautiful Bill Act signed by President Trump,states may require 18-64-year-olds on aid to complete about 80 hours per month of work,job training,education,or community service,with biannual verifications that could led to coverage losses for many. the article highlights potential loopholes, such as leveraging conditions like addiction or frailty to exempt people or enrolling them in volunteer programs that count toward the requirements, and it mocks these measures as Kafkaesque and Dickensian. It uses satirical comparisons to Catch-22 to illustrate the contradictory aim of needing to work to keep benefits while relying on volunteering to satisfy the rules. the piece argues that the policy shift is a seismic and absurd approach to balancing budgets at the expense of residents\u2019 health coverage.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<section> \t\t\t\t<script>console.log(\"ad slot (AC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC2)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC3)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC4)\")<\/script><\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;We&rsquo;re getting very creative.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Those could be the words at the top of the r&eacute;sum&eacute; or LinkedIn profile for Dr. Alister Martin, New York City&rsquo;s new health commissioner. Heaven knows, I&rsquo;ll give him that much. It&rsquo;s true! He, and others around him in New York state, are indeed getting very creative.<\/p>\n<p>They are getting creative about, basically, how to effectively scam the government out of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/trump-administration-blocks-200-million-medicaid-funds-minnesota-amid-fraud-probe\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Medicaid<\/a> funds by getting around new rules in the most preposterous way possible.<\/p>\n<p>As a result of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/deep-dive-record-breaking-tax-refunds-expected-americans-2026-thanks-big-beautiful-bill\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">One Big Beautiful Bill Act<\/a> signed by President Donald Trump last year, there were ways to reduce the costs for the government by cutting down on entitlement abuses. One of these ways was work requirements for able-bodied individuals on Medicaid or Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits.<\/p>\n<p>According to the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.chcs.org\/resource\/a-summary-of-national-medicaid-work-requirements\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Center for Health Care Strategies<\/a>, if you&rsquo;re between the ages of 18 and 64, don&rsquo;t have an impediment to working or training, and you&rsquo;re receiving aid through those programs, you need &ldquo;80 hours per month of one or more of the following activities: employment; participation in a work program, such as job training; enrollment in an educational program (at least half time), <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/gops-earle-sears-forced-off-campaign-trail\/\" title=\"GOP\u2019s Earle-Sears Forced Off Campaign Trail\">community service activities<\/a>, or a combination of these activities.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p> <script type=\"text\/javascript\"> \t\t\tif ( getCookie( \"ff_subbed\" ) ) { \t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"anyclipvideo\").remove() \t\t\t} else { \t\t\t\tdocument.addEventListener(\"DOMContentLoaded\", function() { \t\t\t\t\tfunction loadAnyclip() { \t\t\t\t\t\tconst container=document.getElementById(\"anyclipvideo\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!container) return;  \t\t\t\t\t\tconst script=document.createElement(\"script\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.src=\"https:\/\/player.anyclip.com\/anyclip-widget\/lre-widget\/prod\/v1\/src\/lre.js\"; \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.setAttribute(\"pubname\", \"westernjournalcom\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.setAttribute(\"widgetname\", \"001w000001jULVcAAO_M12924\");  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ append inside the container so player shows in correct spot \t\t\t\t\t\tcontainer.appendChild(script); \t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\tfunction findPreviousParagraph(selector, x) { \t\t\t\t\t\tconst targetElement=document.querySelector(selector); \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!targetElement) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.warn(\"Target element not found.\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\treturn null; \t\t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Get all <\/p>\n<p> elements in order as they appear in the document \t\t\t\t\t\tlet paragraphs=Array.from(document.querySelectorAll(\"p\"));  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Find the index of the last <\/p>\n<p> before the target element \t\t\t\t\t\tlet targetIndex=paragraphs.findIndex(p=> p.compareDocumentPosition(targetElement) & Node.DOCUMENT_POSITION_PRECEDING);  \t\t\t\t\t\tif (targetIndex===-1 || targetIndex <x) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.warn(\"Not enough paragraphs before the target element.\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\treturn null; \t\t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\treturn paragraphs[targetIndex - x]; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Set up IntersectionObserver \t\t\t\t\tfunction observeElement(element) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!element) return;  \t\t\t\t\t\tconst observer=new IntersectionObserver( \t\t\t\t\t\t\t(entries)=> { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tentries.forEach(entry=> { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tif (entry.isIntersecting) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log(\"Paragraph is now visible:\", entry.target.textContent.trim()); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tloadAnyclip(); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tobserver.disconnect(); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t}, \t\t\t\t\t\t\t{ threshold: 0.5 } \/\/ Adjust threshold as needed \t\t\t\t\t\t);  \t\t\t\t\t\tobserver.observe(element); \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Find the 1st paragraph before #anyclipvideo and observe it \t\t\t\t\tlet paragraphToObserve=findPreviousParagraph(\"#anyclipvideo\", 2); \t\t\t\t\tobserveElement(paragraphToObserve); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> <\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;The rules are intended to push more people into the work force and reduce what Republicans have characterized as waste and fraud in government programs,&rdquo; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2026\/04\/14\/nyregion\/nyc-medicaid-cuts.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">The New York Times<\/a> reported Tuesday.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;States must now verify twice a year that many Medicaid recipients remain eligible, a requirement that is expected to result in many people losing coverage periodically, especially if their work hours vary or they move between jobs, or have difficulty navigating the paperwork requirements.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>While the state seems to have escaped what the biggest issue was &mdash; that of millions of <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >people losing regular health-care coverage &#038;mdash<\/a>; that doesn&rsquo;t mean they dodged a bullet. In fact, in New York City, this means that over half of the residents could lose Medicaid coverage.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;This is truly a seismic shift in Medicaid policy, the largest in the history of the program,&rdquo; said Amir Bassiri, the state&rsquo;s director of Medicaid.<\/p>\n<p>Yes, a seismic shift in how New York does business: You have to work or aim toward working to get benefits. How draconian. Dickensian, even.<\/p>\n<p>So, faced with something out of Dickens, New York countered with a bit of malevolent bureaucratic genius that even Franz Kafka or Joseph Heller might have appreciated.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;To keep as many New Yorkers as possible from being cut from the Medicaid rolls next year, state and city officials are looking for ways to prove that patients are afflicted with addictions or are medically frail, conditions that would exempt them from the new restrictions,&rdquo; the Times reported.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;And they are considering how to <strong>sign people up for volunteer work &mdash; such as helping other New Yorkers navigate Medicaid&rsquo;s new rules &mdash; which could satisfy the law&rsquo;s work requirements<\/strong>.&rdquo; [Emphasis ours.]\n<p>That&rsquo;s how Dr. Martin says the city and others in New York are &ldquo;getting very creative.&rdquo; And indeed they are.<\/p>\n<p>In fact, speaking of Heller, this could turn into a literal Catch-22. To be stripped of benefits, you must be able-bodied, between the ages of 18 and 64, and not working. But perhaps you need to learn about these benefits. So you can get a &ldquo;job&rdquo; volunteering to teach other people how to not be stripped of these benefits, thus meaning you can&rsquo;t be stripped of these benefits.<\/p>\n<p>The only thing more fitting is if it turns out one of the overseers of this boondoggle was named <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Major_Major_Major_Major\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Dr. Doctor Doctor<\/a> and actually only received his medical degree because of a clerical error regarding his given name.<\/p>\n<p>Oh, but I&rsquo;m sure there&rsquo;s going to be the most <em>rigorous<\/em> of oversight as to whether this volunteer work is, like, actually happening and not just a no-show gig. Also, I&rsquo;m the ghost of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/ross-perots-last-political-act-huge-show-support-trump\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Ross Perot<\/a>. Both of those statements are equally true.<\/p>\n<p>Heck, this is preposterously easy to fix, if you want to go to lengths even Kafka or Heller couldn&rsquo;t possibly comprehend. You could get two people to train <em>each other<\/em> on the new rules, so they both qualify!<\/p>\n<p>And then get people to train other people to train people on navigating the new rules. And hire trainers to train the trainers. And so on, and so forth, until, bam, you&rsquo;ve wasted an obscene amount of money and credibility just to ensure you didn&rsquo;t lose a dime of the Washington, D.C., dole, and not a single person <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/breaking-trump-cuts-off-illegals-social-security-act-benefits-return-paused-fraud-punishment-possible\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">has lost benefits they should have lost<\/a>, and not a single erg of productive energy has been expended.<\/p>\n<p>To rot with Kafka and Heller. Even Keynes and <a href=\"https:\/\/billmitchell.org\/blog\/ques\/question-2547.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">his ditch-digging proposals<\/a> would find this arrangement absurd.<\/p>\n<p>Or, if John Maynard were still alive, still a proper Englishman and thus prone to being somewhat too polite, perhaps he&rsquo;d just call it &ldquo;getting very creative.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<div style=\"position: relative;\">\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<div class=\"entry-submit-correction inner-content\">\n<div class=\"correction-form\">\n<form style=\"display: none;\">\n<div class=\"sc-name-field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* Name<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"name\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"sc--field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* <\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<label>* Message<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t<textarea name=\"message\" required><\/textarea> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"required-message\" style=\"display: none; padding-bottom: 15px;\">* All fields are required.<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"submit\" value=\"Submit\" onclick=\"event.preventDefault(); firefly_sc();\"> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"firefly-sc-confirm\" style=\"display: none;\">Success!<\/div>\n<\/p><\/form>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> \t\t<script> \t\t\tfunction firefly_sc() { \t\t\t\tif( typeof window.captchaPublicKey==typeof undefined ){ \t\t\t\t\tconsole.error('window.captchaPublicKey is not defined'); \t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\tgrecaptcha.execute( window.captchaPublicKey, { action: 'submit_correction' } ).then( function( token ) { \t\t\t\t\tvar opts={ \t\t\t\t\t\taction:    'firefly_sc_submit', \t\t\t\t\t\tname:      document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"name\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\t:     document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tmessage:   document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"message\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tpost_id:   firefly_post_id, \t\t\t\t\t\tcap_token: token \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tvar inputs=[ 'name', '', 'message' ];  \t\t\t\t\tfor( var i=0; i <inputs.length; i++ ) if( ! ( opts[inputs[i]]=document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"' + inputs[i] + '\"]' ).value ) ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .required-message' ).style.display='block'; \t\t\t\t\t\treturn; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction input[type=\"submit\"]' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).src=firefly_loading_gif_url; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='inline-block';  \t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( 'ma subbing' );  \t\t\t\t\tif( firefly_post_id ) opts['post_id']=firefly_post_id;  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Send the data using post with element id name and name2*\/ \t\t\t\t\tvar posting=jQuery.post( firefly_ajax_url, opts );  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Alerts the results *\/ \t\t\t\t\tposting.done( function( response ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif( response.success ) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( response.data ); \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-confirm' ).style.display='block';  \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdataLayer.push( { 'event': 'submit-correction' } ); \t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> \t     \t\t\t\t\t\t     \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p style=\"border: 1px solid #f5f5f5; padding: 16px;\">Advertise with The Western Journal and reach millions of highly engaged readers, while supporting our work. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/advertise-us\/?wj_source=article\">Advertise Today<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><script>console.log(\"ad slot (BA1)\")<\/script> \t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Do you want a paraphrase of the entire passage or just the opening line \u201cWe\u2019re getting very creative\u201d? If you want the opening line, here are concise options (all under 55 characters):<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; &#8220;Officials are getting unusually inventive.&#8221;<br \/>\n&#8211; &#8220;They\u2019re becoming quite inventive.&#8221;<br \/>\n&#8211; &#8220;We\u2019re seeing unusually creative tactics.&#8221;<br \/>\n&#8211; &#8220;People are getting very inventive.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>If you\u2019d like a paraphrase of the whole article, please specify the portion to cover (or paste a shorter excerpt) and I\u2019ll condense it<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2591578,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Medicaid-work-requirement.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[11975,32120,77899,55175],"class_list":["post-2591577","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-medicaid","tag-new-york","tag-policy-innovation","tag-work-requirements"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Medicaid-work-requirement.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2591577","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2591577"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2591577\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2591581,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2591577\/revisions\/2591581"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2591578"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2591577"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2591577"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2591577"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}