Indiana Medicaid Work Requirements

80 hours per month of work or qualifying activity — employment, education, job training or community service. The rules also recognize an income alternative: earnings of at least $580 a month (80 hours at the $7.25 federal minimum wage) can satisfy the requirement through income instead of hour tracking, and seasonal or irregular earnings may be averaged.

The 80 hours do not have to come from one paid job. Indiana counts employment, attending school at least half-time, an apprenticeship, a work program and volunteering in the community, and activities can be combined to reach the monthly total — so a training course or a part-time education program can satisfy the requirement on its own, or make up the gap left by work.

Federal law exempts parents and caretakers of children under 14, pregnant and postpartum women, people receiving disability benefits, the medically frail, students enrolled at least half-time, former foster youth up to 26, and people already meeting TANF or SNAP work rules. FSSA publishes a month-by-month exemption rule rather than a status test: a HIP member does not have to meet the requirement for a month if, for at least one day of that month, they are under 26 and formerly in foster care; a member of a federally recognised Tribe; a parent or caregiver of a child age 13 or younger; a caregiver of a person with a disability; a veteran with a total (100%) disability rating; pregnant or within 12 months of a pregnancy ending; in jail or prison or released within the last 90 days; following the work rules for SNAP or TANF; in a drug or alcohol treatment program; or medically frail or with special medical needs. FSSA adds that other exemptions may apply.

Under the 2027 rules, Indiana reviews eligibility at least every 6 months instead of every 12 — which makes keeping monthly proof of work, activity or exemption status more important. Our 6-month renewal reminder (calendar feed) tracks the federal redetermination cycles.

Adults covered through Healthy Indiana Plan (HIP 2.0) qualify with household income up to 138% of the federal poverty level. Children, pregnant women, parents and people with disabilities have separate limits. Our dedicated Indiana Medicaid income limits page carries the full 2026 table with monthly dollars for every household size and program, and Indiana Family and Social Services Administration publishes the official charts and makes the final determination.

Full 2026 Indiana Medicaid income limits chart by family size →

Losing Medicaid triggers a 60-day special enrollment period for ACA marketplace coverage, and children may qualify for CHIP even when adults do not. Our coverage alternatives guide ranks the realistic fallbacks — marketplace subsidies, employer coverage, CHIP and community health centers — by cost.

FSSA states that beginning January 1, 2027, Indiana Medicaid will begin enforcing work requirements for both new applicants and existing members eligible under the Healthy Indiana Plan. It applies to adults ages 19 to 64 who are not pregnant and are not enrolled in or eligible for Medicare. This is a change from the state's earlier history: Indiana held an approved but unused work-requirement waiver from 2018 that never took effect, so the requirement Hoosiers will actually meet comes from the current federal rules plus FSSA's published plan.

FSSA's approved activities are employment, attending school at least half-time, an apprenticeship, a work program, and volunteering in the community. Members and applicants can combine activities to reach the 80 hours in a month — for example part-time work plus volunteering. Keep a monthly record that shows hours rather than only earnings, since the test here is hours and not income.

No — they are separate compliance systems that can both affect coverage, and FSSA has not yet published how a failure in one interacts with the other. HIP already reduces benefits or ends coverage for members above 100% FPL who fall behind on POWER account contributions, independent of any work rule. Keep the POWER account current first, then build monthly activity documentation on top of it.

Yes. HIP is Indiana's Medicaid program for expansion adults 19–64, built around POWER accounts and benefit tiers. Children's coverage runs under Hoosier Healthwise, and Indiana's regular Medicaid categories cover pregnant women, seniors and people with disabilities.

Yes — FSSA publishes a month-by-month exemption rule: you are excused for any month in which you fall into a listed category for at least one day. The categories include parents or caregivers of a child 13 or younger, caregivers of a person with a disability, pregnancy or the 12 months after a pregnancy ends, people meeting SNAP or TANF work rules, people in drug or alcohol treatment, the medically frail, and several others listed on this page. FSSA notes that other exemptions may apply.

No. During 2025 Indiana had no Medicaid work requirement in effect — HIP's POWER account contribution rules applied, but the 80-hour activity test arrives with the January 1, 2027 enforcement date FSSA has published. Indiana held an approved work-requirement waiver from 2018 that was never implemented.

The rule Hoosiers will follow is not a separate Indiana bill: it comes from the federal OBBBA law plus FSSA's published implementation plan for the Healthy Indiana Plan. Indiana's earlier waiver approval (2018, never implemented) grew out of state legislation, but the 80-hour test arriving in 2027 is federal.