Fifty-one percent of registered voters said they support the idea of individuals who are in enrolled in Medicaid to have a job to be eligible for benefits, according to a poll from the Morning Consult and Politico.
Twenty-four percent strongly supported the idea, 27 percent somewhat supported the idea, while 18 percent somewhat opposed the idea and 19 percent strongly opposed the idea. Another 13 percent said they didn't know or didn’t have an opinion.
Democrats were less likely to support the idea, with 38 percent in support, while 67 percent of Republicans supported work requirements in Medicaid.
Additionally, 68 percent of those who voted for President Donald Trump supported work requirements while 37 percent of those who voted for Hillary Clinton supported having a job to get Medicaid benefits.
Roughly the same percentage of those who worked in government versus the private sector said they supported work requirements. Fifty-six percent of those who work in the private sector say individuals eligible for Medicaid should have a job and 55 percent of those who work in government said the same thing.
The Senate proposed these types of work requirements in their replacement to Obamacare, the Better Care Reconciliation Act. Work requirements were also included in the House's replacement to Obamacare called the American Health Care Act.
"Our proposal will prohibit states from expanding into the current broken Medicaid system," said Speaker of the House Paul Ryan (R., Wis.). "It will provide the option for states to implement work requirements for Medicaid recipients. Most importantly, it will ensure the rug isn't pulled from underneath any able-bodied patient as he or she transitions to other coverage."
According to Jonathan Ingram, vice president of research at the Foundation for Government Accountability, work requirements in Medicaid can help individuals get back on path to self-sufficiency.
"Medicaid work requirements are a powerful tool that can move millions of able-bodied adults out of dependency and into self-sufficiency," said Ingram. "In both cash assistance and food stamps, work requirements led to lower enrollment and less time spent on welfare, preserving limited resources for the truly needy."
"Better still," added Ingram, "those leaving welfare went back to work in record numbers and saw their incomes more than double on average, earning more than enough to replace the welfare benefits they used to receive. The Trump administration should immediately approve states' requests to implement common-sense work requirements in the Medicaid program."