Vice President J.D. Vance is leading a new task force to stop fraud.
Yesterday, Vance announced that the federal government is freezing $259 million worth of Medicaid funding in Minnesota until the state complies with a fraud investigation.
“There are too many Americans who are being defrauded by very bad actors in our society, people who take the goodwill, the trust of the American taxpayer, and they decide to use it against us,” Vance said on Wednesday. “They decide to make themselves rich, instead of allowing these programs that are set up to make it easier for people to take care of their families, to make it easier for autistic kids to get the after-school care they need, to make it easier for people to get the healthcare they need.”
Minnesota allegedly paid about $9 billion in fraud across 14 social programs that were meant to feed children, help autistic kids, and help families find housing and childcare.
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, who isn’t running for re-election because of exposed fraud, said that he was angry over the fraud in his state.
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Vance announced a nationwide six-month moratorium on Medicare enrollment for certain durable medical equipment, prosthetics, orthotics, and supplies suppliers.
Dr. Mehmet Oz, the administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, said that there are twice as many durable medical equipment manufacturers in South Florida as McDonald’s.
If Minnesota won’t clean up their benefit systems, then the amount of deferred federal payments to the state might reach $1 billion, Oz said. Walz has 60 days to respond.
The task force follows a Georgia man who owned two telemedicine companies, being sentenced to seven years in prison. He was ordered to pay $27.9 million because he allegedly fraudulently billed Medicare for unnecessary durable medical equipment.
Vance estimated that fraud in blue states could mount to over $300 billion when accounting for various benefit programs, including healthcare, food stamps, and more.
