Taya's Battle for Medicaid Access | Bozeman News

A 19-year-old cancer survivor, Taya Hailstone, is caught in a bureaucratic nightmare as Montana’s health department stripped her of critical Medicaid coverage just before she turned 20 — without consulting her doctors. Despite beating Hodgkin lymphoma five years ago and now facing lifelong health complications from treatment, Taya’s case exposes how new federal Medicaid work requirements are creating chaos for people with disabilities. With 18.5 million Medicaid enrollees soon required to prove they’re working or volunteering — many of them with chronic illnesses — the system risks pushing vulnerable patients out of care. Taya is now reapplying for Social Security disability, hoping it will restore her coverage — even if it means sacrificing future employment. Advocates warn this growing complexity could force millions into medical limbo, designed not to help, but to make people give up.

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This is an automated, high-level news summary based on public reporting.
Sources:
https://montanafreepress.org/2026/09/16/a-cancer-survivor-hoped-to-work-then-she-lost-her-medicaid-disability-coverage/

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