Photo provided by the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services and Nebraska Department of Corrections.Governor Jim Pillen in December announced that Nebraska will become the first state to implement new work requirements in the Medicaid system under President Trump’s new tax and policy pac kage, starting May 1, which is Friday. Organizations like Nebraska Appleseed, have raised concerns about the immediacy of the rollout.  No new funding or staffing has been appropriated for outreach and that most Medicaid recipients at risk of losing insurance are unaware of changes that are coming. “We’re very nervous to see what this lack of investment means for Nebraska,” said Sarah Maresh, the health care access program director for Nebraska Appleseed. Also, with the new requirements taking effect on Friday comes maintenance for the Department of Health and Human Services website, starting Friday night.  There could brief outages could occur over the weekend. That could cause possible service interruption and affect Medicaid coverage for tens of thousands of Nebraskans. The new requirements apply to work-eligible adults, ages 19 to 64, who are enrolled through the Medicaid expansion program. They must show they’re working or performing community service at least 80 hours a month or that they are enrolled in school at least half-time. Exemptions exist for people with serious medical conditions or who are full-time caregivers. Pillen, in announcing Nebraska’s accelerated timeline in December, framed the requirements as a way to “prevent generational poverty in Nebraska.” “We’re not here to take everybody to the curb … [but] making sure we get every able-bodied Nebraskan to be part of our community,” the governor said then. Federal law set a January 2027 deadline for states to make the change to their Medicaid system. ...read more read less