House GOP Unveils 14 Healthcare Fraud Bills After Report Flags Up to $521 Billion in Annual Losses
Updated
Updated · Fox News · Sep 29
House GOP Unveils 14 Healthcare Fraud Bills After Report Flags Up to $521 Billion in Annual Losses
1 articles · Updated · Fox News · Sep 29
Summary
Fourteen House Republican bills target fraud in Medicare, Medicaid and other subsidized health programs after a House Energy & Commerce Committee report said federal programs lose $233 billion to $521 billion a year to fraud.
Medicaid sits at the center of the push because the report says weak controls, complex administration and a "pay and chase" enforcement model let false claims get paid before investigators can act.
The package would tighten fraud detection, strengthen enforcement and pressure states to police abuse, including requiring a single state Medicaid financial-control official, annual vulnerability reports and cross-checks on applicants removed from other programs.
Federal healthcare programs made up 24% of U.S. spending in 2024, while Medicaid averaged 30.7% of state budgets; the report projects California's Medi-Cal costs rising to $219.7 billion by 2027 and New York Medicaid spending reaching $124 billion.
The GOP push also cites overseas schemes, including DOJ's Operation Gold Rush, which alleged Russian-linked actors billed more than $10 million in false claims, and follows the Trump administration's broader fraud crackdown, including plans to remove 760,000 ACA enrollees.