Federal officials have asked a court to expedite its consideration of their appeal of rulings that threw out Medicaid work requirements in Arkansas and Kentucky.
In a filing on Thursday with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services said the rulings by U.S. District Judge James Boasberg of Washington, D.C., disrupted demonstration projects in the two states and created uncertainty about whether work requirements that have been approved in other states will be struck down by a judge.
The health agency asked the court to hear oral arguments “during the first week after the summer recess” and issue a decision in time for the losing party to appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court before the end of its next term. According to the Supreme Court’s website, terms end in June or July. That would make the end of the next term in June or July of 2020.
The plaintiffs in two cases, which were consolidated under a clerk’s order Thursday into one case before the appeals court, are expected to file a brief in opposition to the request for speedy consideration, the health agency said in the filing.
Read Saturday's Arkansas Democrat-Gazette for full details.