Indiana Medicaid posts rules for 2027 HIP work requirements

Indiana Medicaid has posted implementation details for Healthy Indiana Plan work requirements that will begin being enforced Jan. 1, 2027.

Most HIP adults ages 19 through 64 who are not pregnant and are not enrolled in or eligible for Medicare will need to meet the requirement or have an approved exemption. The state says members who do not have an approved exemption and fail to meet the requirements can lose HIP coverage.

The policy does not apply to every HIP member. Indiana’s published guidance lists a range of exemptions, and the state is directing members to review whether they qualify before enforcement begins.

What the monthly requirement is

For members subject to the policy, the standard is 80 hours per month of qualifying activity. Eligible activities include work, volunteering, education, an apprenticeship or participation in a work program.

Indiana Medicaid also says activity completed during the three months before an application or renewal will count toward the requirement. That lookback period applies before the application or renewal, rather than requiring affected members to wait until the application or renewal date to begin qualifying activity.

The state’s guidance describes the rule as a requirement for HIP adults in the covered age range, subject to the listed exclusions and exemptions. It is not a statement that all adults enrolled in HIP will be required to complete 80 hours every month.

Who may be exempt

Published exemptions include pregnancy and caregiving for a child age 13 or younger or for a person with a disability. Tribal members, certain veterans and people formerly in foster care who are younger than 26 are also among the groups listed for exemption.

Other listed exemptions cover people who are incarcerated or recently released, participating in treatment, complying with Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program or Temporary Assistance for Needy Families requirements, or considered medically frail or to have a serious medical condition.

Whether an individual qualifies depends on the state’s exemption process. The guidance makes clear that members should check their own circumstances rather than assume the work requirement applies or does not apply to them.

Steps Indiana Medicaid is asking members to take

The Indiana Family and Social Services Administration is telling HIP members to verify their information, check for exemptions, plan qualifying activity and establish a Benefits Portal account.

Those steps are part of the implementation information released by the agency on July 6, 2026. The agency has also published member notices that warn of the potential loss of HIP coverage for people without an approved exemption who do not meet the requirements.

For affected members, the key date is Jan. 1, 2027, when enforcement is scheduled to start. The state says additional implementation information will be released, so operational details may change before that date.

HIP members can use the state’s published work-requirement guidance to review the covered age range, qualifying activities and exemption categories. Members who expect to be subject to the policy will need to prepare for the 80-hour monthly standard or seek an applicable exemption before enforcement begins.

Sources

• FSSA Communications and Public Affairs, Indiana Family and Social Services Administration
• HIP Work Requirements, Indiana Family and Social Services Administration