As Congress considers major changes to the federal Medicaid program, West Virginia Congressman Riley Moore is voicing support for the proposals, calling them a “nuanced and perfect solution” that protects state funding while encouraging personal responsibility.
The legislation, under review by the House Energy and Commerce Committee, includes work and education requirements for able-bodied adults without dependents—at least 80 hours per month—as well as stricter eligibility and income verification rules. Moore said these changes won’t force West Virginia to spend more but will help reduce federal costs.
“If individuals don’t want to look for jobs, then yes, you could lose Medicaid,” Moore said during an appearance on MetroNews Talkline. “But this is fairly straightforward and simple.”
The Congressional Budget Office estimates the bill would cut $715 billion in health care spending over the next decade and result in at least 8.6 million more Americans without health coverage by 2034.
Critics, including Kelly Allen of the West Virginia Center on Budget & Policy, argue the changes will cause tens of thousands of eligible residents to lose coverage due to burdensome red tape.
“This Medicaid proposal would harm untold West Virginians,” Allen said, warning of lost federal dollars, reduced health care access, and job losses in the sector.
More than 500,000 West Virginians—nearly one-third of the state—rely on Medicaid.
While Medicaid reform is necessary, will it be paired with meaningful state-level conservative tax reforms and budget priorities that grow the economy by attracting job creators organically—rather than relying on short-term taxpayer-funded handouts to corporations with little return for taxpayers? And if the federal government does not roll back regulations that crippled West Virginia’s energy-based economy in the first place, do these cuts risk deepening hardship for the very people placed on Medicaid by past radical policy decisions?
