Fox News contributor: “Essentially Medicaid is part of a nanny state”
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From the February 6, 2025, edition of Fox News' America Reports
JOHN ROBERTS (ANCHOR): So Senator John Kennedy of Louisiana who writes about this in the National Review. He says in part, numerous studies show human beings are happier and healthier when employed. Long-term joblessness associated with higher rates of cardiovascular disease, depression, and anxiety. One study even recommended employment as a quote critical mental health intervention.
He says there are 15 million able-bodied adults without children on Medicaid who could probably reenter the workforce. This is kind of like the idea that we saw back in the Clinton administration of welfare to work.
DR. MARC SIEGEL (FOX CONTRIBUTOR): Or bridge to jobs. And I completely agree with everything you just said. It is 15 million that have been identified, John.
In the Trump 1 administration 13 states received approval for just this kind of program and another 9 were applying for it when the Biden administration came in and nixed it. So, this is something on the table for a while.
I agree with the issue it improves health. I also think, by the way, that's its tied in with something else you are going to ask me about, which is people using Medicaid in the wrong way. They might have a way to make money, but they don’t tie it in with their health insurance so essentially Medicaid is part of a nanny state.
You know, the vast majority of people in this country get their insurance by working for it and they are proud of it and might even take a job a little less and they want in order to get the health insurance to provide for their family. With Medicaid it's uncoupled and the federal government pays 70% of Medicaid across the board, so even though it's a state-administered program to a large extent it is a federally-funded program and fraud and abuse and misuse of Medicaid is a federal crime.