What's the Cost of Medicaid Work Requirements? Georgia Offers Clues

What's Happening

Politics

What's the Cost of Medicaid Work Requirements? Georgia Offers Clues

What's going on: In a push to pass the so-called “big, beautiful bill” before President Donald Trump’s July 4 deadline, the Senate began a “vote-a-rama” on Monday morning, giving lawmakers the chance to propose unlimited amendments. It had stretched more than 19 hours by early Tuesday. Democrats and critics seized the moment to stall, air grievances (though not as animatedly as Elon Musk), and force votes on controversial issues — including sweeping changes to health care. One such amendment aims to offset tax cuts by adding work requirements for certain Medicaid recipients. The proposal would require adults aged 19 to 64 to spend 80 hours a month working, training, studying, or volunteering — and prove it twice a year to stay covered (with some exemptions, like for pregnant people). The problem? Georgia already tried something similar — and it’s been a mess, according to ProPublica.

What it means: Georgia remains the only state with an active Medicaid work mandate, after Arkansas scrapped its version when more than 18,000 people lost coverage in just a few months — with no uptick in employment. Georgia’s rollout hasn’t gone much better. The state has faced enrollment issues, staffing shortages, costly verification systems, and long waits to approve benefits. Former state Medicaid officials told ProPublica that if Congress follows Georgia’s lead, taxpayers could be on the hook for hundreds of millions in administrative costs — and up to 16 million Americans risk losing coverage. While the Congressional Budget Office estimates 10 million low-income people in the US could lose health insurance, Republicans say kids, pregnant people, and elderly Americans in poverty would keep their coverage.

Related: To Build More Housing, California’s Rolling Back Key Environmental Rules (Politico)

US News

Texas Closes Major Loophole in Sexual Assault Prosecutions

Disclaimer: The following story mentions sexual assault, which could be triggering to some readers.

What’s going on: A legal loophole that made it nearly impossible for some rape and sexual assault survivors in Texas to seek justice has been closed. A new law, named after survivor and advocate Summer Willis, expands the state’s definition of consent. Willis says she was drugged and raped at a fraternity party in 2014, while she was a student-athlete at the University of Texas. Prosecutors told her the case didn’t qualify as sexual assault because she had accepted a drink — one she believes was laced — before the assault. Under the new measure, sexual assault now includes cases where “the other person cannot consent because of intoxication or impairment by any substance.” The change is part of a broader overhaul of Texas’s consent laws and takes effect this fall.

What it means: Texas’s move signals renewed cultural momentum at a time when the #MeToo movement has faced several setbacks. Earlier this month, Harvey Weinstein’s case in New York ended in a mistrial. And more men implicated in sexual misconduct have also begun suing for libel… and winning. Meanwhile, the new law could pave the way for more change, with at least 20 states still having intoxication loopholes, according to CNN. It’s also giving many survivors hope by acknowledging how often assaults happen in party settings, particularly on college campuses. As Willis put it: “I’ll never get justice from this bill. It’s not retroactive, but I know that every victim from the day of the signing … won’t have to be told it doesn’t count.”

Related: Jury Deliberations in the Diddy Trial Almost Immediately Hit a Roadblock (AP)

Politics

Trump's Big, Connected Citizenship Database

What's going on: The Trump administration quietly built a tool to check the citizenship status of every voter in America. According to NPR, the Department of Homeland Security upgraded a system originally used to verify immigration status for public benefits — enabling officials to cross-check entire voter rolls against immigration and Social Security data. It’s the first time the US has created a centralized, searchable database for verifying voter citizenship, according to NPR. And it’s part of a broader push from Trump’s team to build massive federal data systems — including DOGE and Palantir-powered tools that link records across agencies like the IRS, DHS, and more. The move also fits a narrative Trump has pushed for years: that widespread voter fraud by noncitizens is rigging elections — a claim with no evidence behind it.

What it means: The new tool could help confirm voter eligibility without asking people to produce passports or birth certificates. But it also raises red flags for civil rights and privacy advocates. Election officials and legal experts warn that the data may be unreliable, especially for newly naturalized citizens, since the systems were never designed for this purpose. A flawed check could wrongly flag voters, delay registrations, or even lead to unlawful purges. “If I believed this database was accurate… you’re damn right I would use it,” one election official said. “The question is, is the data usable?”

Related: DOJ Ramps Up Efforts To Strip Citizenship From Naturalized Americans With Criminal Records (The Guardian) 

Your Political Briefing

The week in political chaos.

Original-ish: You’ve heard of the GOP’s “Project 2025.” Now, some Democrats are laying the groundwork for a “Project 2029.”

Big money: The Supreme Court’s jumping into another campaign finance fight — this time, over GOP efforts to lift limits on party spending. Brace for more ads.

“Noticeably Tweaked”: Disney’s Magic Kingdom officially unveiled its new Trump animatronic. Park-goers already have thoughts.

Watch Now

Settle This

This photo of Jessica Alba and her daughter looking unimpressed is going viral. Where are they?

Extra Credit

Stream

Where there’s smoke, there’s a twisted new thriller. Based on real events chronicled in the popular Firebug podcast, the latest Apple TV+ series — aptly titled Smoke — follows Dave (Rocketman’s Taron Egerton), an arson investigator who teams up with troubled-yet-sharp detective Michelle (Lovecraft Country’s Jurnee Smollett) to hunt down two serial arsonists setting fire to the fictional Pacific Northwest town of Umberland. Created by novelist and screenwriter Dennis Lehane (of Shutter Island and Mystic River fame), expect cat-and-mouse chases, breathless twists, and slow-burning secrets.

Game Time

Start your Tuesday off right with Typeshift, a fun new game that challenges you to create words from a set number of letters. Warning: It’s very addicting. Start playing.