State tracker

Minnesota — Medicaid Coverage Retention

Applies Last updated 2026-06-03 · confidence: high

Minnesota is subject to federal Medicaid community-engagement/work-requirement implementation beginning January 1, 2027, unless modified by future federal or state guidance.

Procurement / RFP activity

None identified

No public RFP for work-requirement communications/outreach identified as of 2026-06-03.

Procurement portal: State of Minnesota SWIFT Supplier Portal (supplier.systems.state.mn.us); DHS posts its own solicitations at mn.gov/dhs/partners-and-providers/grants-rfps/open-rfps/ · Implementation funding: MN DHS 2026 supplemental budget requests ~$1M in FY2027 (and each year after) for work-requirement data-sharing, plus internal FTEs: 6 FTE in Health Care Eligibility Operations and 5 FTE in the Office of the Medicaid Medical Director for community-engagement/communications. Federal CMS Government Efficiency Grants ($200M nationwide in FY2026, split half evenly across states + half by affected-member ratio) are the federal implementation funding source; MN's specific allocation not yet public.

Latest detail

Minnesota is implementing the H.R.1/OBBBA community-engagement (work) requirement for Medical Assistance enrollees ages 21-64 (no dependent children, not pregnant, not AI/AN, not disability-based), with tracking expected ~December 2026 and enforcement January 1, 2027; DHS estimates ~320,000 Minnesotans (about 23% of the Medicaid population) could be subject. DHS states the first changes take effect in fall 2026 and is waiting on final CMS guidance (Administrator Oz, due ~June 2026) before finalizing operations. The 2026-27 biennial HHS budget (~$7B, cutting ~$70M GF vs. the February forecast) funds implementation chiefly through new internal FTEs and a ~$1M/yr data-sharing line rather than a standalone outreach/communications procurement, and the required June 30-Aug 31, 2026 member-notice outreach appears slated to run through existing DHS/MNsure eligibility and notice systems. As of 2026-06-03 no MN-specific RFP/RFI for work-requirement member communications or for a community-engagement/eligibility-system build has been posted on DHS's open-RFP page or surfaced in SWIFT, though this does not prove none exists or will issue.

Medicaid expansion status	Expanded
Implementation status	Pending state guidance — DHS preparing for federal default implementation; maintains a dedicated "Federal Medicaid changes" page
Who may be affected	Yes — expansion adults
Reporting frequency	Pending state guidance
Reporting method	Pending state guidance
Renewal cadence	Every 6 months for expansion adults (H.R.1)
Notice timing	Pending state guidance
Self-attestation allowed?	Pending state guidance
State system / vendor	Pending state guidance
Major Medicaid MCOs	Pending state guidance
Languages likely needed	Pending state guidance

Key exemption categories to monitor

80 hours/month of work, job training, education, or community service — or qualifying monthly income.
Targets many ACA Medicaid expansion adults (19–64); non-expansion states largely have no such group.
Federal enforcement: January 1, 2027 (states implement; some earlier).
New: expansion adults redetermine every 6 months (not annually).
Commonly-defined exemptions: pregnancy/postpartum; medically frail; primary caregiver; disability; SUD treatment; certain students; tribe (AIAN); short-term hardship. Exact definitions set by CMS rule and each state.

Short-term hardship exemptions to track

Short-term hardship exemptions — adoption pending state guidance.

Member communication risk

Risk detail pending.

What MCOs & state partners should do now

Segment affected members
Identify likely exemptions
Send plain-language multilingual notices
Deploy SMS/email/IVR reminders
Track retention outcomes

Operating in Minnesota?

The member-notice window is open now and closes August 31, 2026. Complete a Coverage Retention Readiness Audit while there is still time to act — we build CMS-compliant, plain-language, multilingual outreach to keep eligible Minnesota members enrolled.

Request a Coverage Retention Audit

Frequently asked

Who is subject to Medicaid work requirements in Minnesota?

Many ACA Medicaid expansion adults ages 19–64 who do not qualify for an exemption. Final scope is set by CMS rule and state implementation.

When do Minnesota Medicaid work requirements start?

Federal enforcement begins January 1, 2027 (some states may implement earlier). Member notices are expected in the federally-required window of June 30–August 31, 2026.

What exemptions are available?

Federal baseline categories include parent/caretaker of a child under 14, pregnant/postpartum, disabled/medically frail, American Indian/Alaska Native, and those already meeting SNAP/TANF work rules. Short-term hardship exemptions and exact definitions are set by CMS rule and state implementation.

Sources

This page tracks publicly available implementation information and is updated as Minnesota publishes guidance. State-specific rules are evolving. Not legal or eligibility advice.