Work requirements for Iowa Medicaid recipients signed into law

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DES MOINES — Some able-bodied Iowans who are covered by Medicaid would be subject to work requirements under legislation signed into law Friday by Gov. Kim Reynolds.

Reynolds directed the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services to request a federal waiver that would allow the state to implement work requirements for some Medicaid patients. Such a waiver is required because the Medicaid program for low-income and disabled individuals is jointly funded by the state and federal government, and operated by the states under federal guidelines.

The waiver has not yet been submitted by the state, Reynolds said Friday.

If the federal government approves the state’s waiver request, the new state