Medical Coverage Assistance Program for Working Individuals with Disabilities

Healthcare

Passed Legislature

This bill passed both chambers and reached final enrollment, even if later executive action is not shown here.

Sponsor: Smith
Last action: 2026-03-13
Official status: Senate - Died in Health Policy
Effective date: Upon becom

Plain English Breakdown

Checked against official source text during the last sync.

Medical Coverage Help for Working People with Disabilities

This bill creates a special Medicaid program to help working people with disabilities who earn too much money to qualify for regular Medicaid but still need medical assistance.

What This Bill Does

Creates a new law that allows the Agency for Health Care Administration to start a special Medicaid buy-in program for working individuals with disabilities.
Requires the agency to determine the income eligibility level for this special Medicaid program.
Specifies that the program must provide full Medicaid benefits and limit any costs like premiums or copays based on what the person earns.
Asks the agency to seek federal approval through a Medicaid waiver or state plan amendment by October 1, 2026.

Who It Names or Affects

Working people with disabilities between 18 and 64 years old who earn too much money to qualify for regular Medicaid but still need medical help.
The Agency for Health Care Administration in Florida.

Terms To Know

Medicaid: A government program that helps people with low income pay for healthcare and medical services.
Income eligibility level: The amount of money a person can earn to still qualify for certain benefits or programs.

Limits and Unknowns

This bill needs federal approval through a Medicaid waiver or state plan amendment before it can be implemented.
It is not clear if the federal government will approve this program by the required date.

Bill History

2026-03-13 Senate
• Died in Health Policy
2026-01-22 Senate
• Introduced
2026-01-16 Senate
• Referred to Health Policy; Appropriations Committee on Health and Human Services; Appropriations
2026-01-08 Senate
• Filed

Official Summary Text

Medical Coverage Assistance Program for Working Individuals with Disabilities; Citing this act as the "Economic Self-Sufficiency for Working Individuals with Disabilities Act"; contingent upon federal approval, requiring the Agency for Health Care Administration to implement and administer a Medicaid buy-in program for specified individuals with disabilities under certain circumstances; requiring the agency to determine the income eligibility level for the program; specifying requirements for the program; requiring the agency to seek federal approval through a Medicaid waiver or state plan amendment by a specified date, etc.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text

Florida Senate
-
2026

SB 1408

By
Senator Smith

17-00452-26 20261408__
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to medical coverage assistance program
3 for working individuals with disabilities; providing a
4 short title; creating s. 409.9141, F.S.; contingent
5 upon federal approval, requiring the Agency for Health
6 Care Administration to implement and administer a
7 Medicaid buy-in program for specified individuals with
8 disabilities under certain circumstances; requiring
9 the agency to determine the income eligibility level
10 for the program; specifying requirements for the
11 program; requiring the agency to seek federal approval
12 through a Medicaid waiver or state plan amendment by a
13 specified date; requiring the agency to implement and
14 administer the program upon receiving federal
15 approval; providing an effective date.
16
17 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
18
19 Section 1.
This act may be cited as the “Economic Self

20
Sufficiency for Working Individuals with Disabilities
Act
.”

21 Section 2. Section 409.9141, Florida Statutes, is created
22 to read:
23
409.9141

Medicaid buy-in program for individuals with

24
disabilities.—

25
(1)(a)

Contingent upon federal approval through a Medicaid

26
waiver or state plan amendment, the agency shall implement and

27
administer a Medicaid buy-in program, authorized under the

28
Ticket to Work and Work Incentives Improvement Act of 1999, Pub.

29
L. No. 106-170, and the Balanced Budget Act of 1997, Pub. L. No.

30
105-33, for individuals with disabilities between 18 and 64

31
years of age who work and whose incomes exceed the maximum

32
income eligibility level for initial enrollment to obtain

33
coverage for medical assistance under the Medicaid program
. The

34
agency shall determine the new income eligibility level for such

35
individuals.

36
(b)

The Medicaid buy-in program under paragraph (a) must

37
provide full Medicaid benefits to eligible individuals and limit

38
any premium or cost sharing to a percentage of an individual’s

39
income, as determined by the agency.

40
(2)

By October 1, 2026, the agency shall seek federal

41
approval through a Medicaid waiver or state plan amendment as

42
necessary to implement the Medicaid buy-in program under this

43
section. The agency shall implement and administer the Medicaid

44
buy-in program upon receiving federal approval.

45 Section 3. This act shall take effect upon becoming a law.