Gov. Maura Healey on Tuesday launched a $10 million effort to raise awareness about federally mandated changes to Medicaid, which will force members to cross new hurdles in order to keep their benefits.
The goal, according to state officials, is to educate the 360,000 people affected so that they take action to try to prove their eligibility and retain their benefits. The changes included strict work requirements and twice-yearly eligibility checks for adults on the state Medicaid program, called MassHealth.
Healey said the changes may affect delivery drivers, home health aides, college students and others who qualify for MassHealth because their income is below a certain threshold.
The Trump administration is “intentionally making it really burdensome to be on MassHealth,” Healey said at an event in Haverhill.
State officials expect hundreds of thousands of Massachusetts residents could lose health coverage and become uninsured — largely because they’re unable to meet the new paperwork requirements.
People who are unable to work because of a health condition will have to prove that they meet the definition of “medically frail.”
“The way this program is going to be implemented is worse than we even imagined,” Healey said. “It is really a calculated effort to find any number of ways to keep people off of Medicaid so that the Trump administration doesn’t have to pay for it.”
The changes will roll out over the next several months. In October, some lawfully present immigrants will lose eligibility for MassHealth.
The new work requirements begin in January. Also beginning next year, many members will have to renew their coverage every six months, instead of once a year.
“It is our responsibility as a state to make sure that every single eligible individual retains coverage,” said Dr. Ryan Schwarz, assistant secretary for MassHealth, adding “Given the completely ridiculous paperwork requirements and administrative hoops that the federal administration is requiring individuals to jump through to retain their coverage, we will have fewer people on healthcare coverage in the future than we do today.”
Massachusetts is spending $30 million to upgrade computer systems and add staff to meet the new federal requirements.
The administration enlisted the consumer advocacy group Health Care For All and 47 community organizations to help educate the public about the changes. The $10 million campaign will include flyers in nine languages, and public-facing ads on social media and at MBTA stations.
“People want to know what’s happening, and they need information now,” said Jennifer Lemmerman, executive director of Health Care For All. “These new rules are complicated, and they already have created confusion.”
The Medicaid changes were set in motion by the One Big Beautiful Bill Act of 2025. The federal legislation, backed by President Trump and Republicans in Congress, cuts $900 billion from Medicaid. Proponents of the legislation say Medicaid programs cover too many adults.
Medicaid provides coverage for about 74 million Americans with low incomes or disabilities, including 1.8 million people in Massachusetts.