(From Eighth District Congressman Jason Smith)Medicare was created as a promise to every American who spent decades working and paying into the system so that when the time came, they could get the care they needed. Today, that promise is under attack. The Ways and Means Committee, which I chair, has jurisdiction over the Medicare program, and I am fighting every day to preserve those benefits for current and future seniors. For years, criminal networks have moved in and are bleeding it dry, but I am committed to finally holding these criminals accountable.
Every year, $60 billion in Medicare funds is stolen through fraud, waste, and abuse — that’s nearly $900 per beneficiary that should be going toward patient care and lower costs for seniors. Instead, criminals are stealing from taxpayers and robbing seniors of the care they need and getting rich off their schemes in the process. The American people deserve answers and accountability. That’s exactly why I held a hearing in the Ways and Means Committee on Tuesday to learn the true scope of this fraud, and what we discovered was deeply concerning.
During our hearing, we heard from a patient, Dr. Lynn Ianni, who told us her story of how she was impacted by fraud. She had a sports injury, and went to get physical therapy, but Medicare denied her claim because she had been enrolled by criminals in a fraudulent hospice care scheme for two years without her knowledge. This individual had never been on hospice a day in her life, but fraudsters had enrolled her without her knowledge and were cashing in.
Sheila Clark, a hospice industry expert, shared that fraudsters were able to enroll a burrito stand in California as an accredited hospice facility and was collecting taxpayer dollars. Let that sink in. One building in Los Angeles County was also found to allegedly be the home of 89 different hospice operations. In LA County alone, there is estimated to be over $3.5 billion in fraud in Medicare. And that’s just California. Democrat governors in Minnesota and New York have turned a blind eye to fraud for years.
In New York, fraudulent home health aides have become the number one new job in the state, totaling more than 600,000 as of January 2026 — more than double than that of the second highest occupation. And in Minnesota, investigators estimate more than $9 billion across several public programs has been lost to fraud, including the sham daycare centers where there wasn’t a single child in the building. Democrat governors have known about these issues and continued to look away.
As Chairman of the Ways and Means Committee, I’m committed to working with President Trump and his administration to tackle fraud wherever it is found. Last year, I requested a GAO investigation that found nearly 60,000 individuals were receiving subsidized care through Obamacare despite the fact that they were dead.
The fact is, it shouldn’t be hard to fix this problem, and we’re already working to enact some commonsense solutions. I pushed for the Ending Improper Payments to Deceased People Act signed into law, which permanently allows the Social Security Administration to share death records with the Treasury Department. In its first year alone, it has stopped over $100 million in payments going to people who are no longer alive.
Unlike Democrat politicians across the country, President Trump is not turning a blind eye to fraud. His 2025 National Health Care Fraud Takedown has saved taxpayers nearly $15 billion and charged more than 300 people committing Medicare fraud with federal crimes. The Trump Administration has also shut down 450 fraudulent hospices in Los Angeles alone, and not one of them have asked why their payments stopped because they knew they were never legitimate to begin with.
The days of fraudsters stealing taxpayer dollars without any fear of oversight or accountability are over. Medicare belongs to the people who earned it, and I will keep fighting every single day to make sure it stays that way.
8 comments:
More boot licken, brown nosing from the biggest hoser in congress. Make yourself useful and grow some gonads to confront the extensive fraud by the trump family and how they're using the taco to get sweet financial deals from Middle East leaders as payment for protection from iran. Yes, that's right, the orange taco is being paid off to use our military to eliminate the Iran threat to other countries. Most of you magats and of course, The PPPP in particular, will no doubt argue against this, (The PPPP will go off on some tangent that nobody will care) but the truth is laid bare. Your president is a pedophile, a crook, and a raper, and he's using your tax dollars to serve his needs.
4:47PM and your President Barack Obama, Deported more Illegal Aliens than any other President and gave IRAN, Billons of Dollars in Cash to not build nuclear bombs - Obama is easily fooled - while allowing over 70,000 Somalia's into America - Costing Billions of Dollars of Fraud on America!
Autopen Sleepy Joe Biden, let in upwards of 15-Million Illegal Aliens to live off the backs of the hardworking taxpayers costing this country Hundreds of Billions of Dollars, and 4:47PM, doesn't want to STOP the Fraud that is going on in America - Probably cause he is part of it - Please Admit that you are on the Government Rolls, Section-8 Housing, Food Stamps, Disability, Illegal Medicare or Medicaid!
More cut and paste bullcrap from The PPPP! Any bets when The PPPP will come up with anything original? Again, I'm not going to bother to read 1047 because it's nothing more than repetitive Democratic Derangement Syndrome excrement being spread thickly and attracting insects and vermon.
I would just note some of the posters above that the subject of this story is Medicare fraud. Please know that such fraud makes it likely that when you need Medicare as you age it may not be a healthy program for your health care due to siphoned $ to fraudsters.
Common sense says this: we should all applaud efforts to eliminate Medicare fraud.
You are correct 843 in your assumptions that at least on paper, this purpose sounds legit. However, your "president" is a traitor, a vindictive manchild, and a self serving narcissist. Anyone who voted, or bows down to this "president", as this politician unfailing does, has to have questionable intent and even less common sense.
Why do you post so many irrelevant things? You may as well be going to the pharmacy to complain about the price of gas. It's equally as effective as your rambling rants.
As we stay on the subject of Medicare fraud, I thank the poster from 552 am for their agreement. Let us fix this issue. Needs fixing, as we agree.
As time goes on I am quite willing to debate the issue
of the performance of our current and recent presidents, and the candidates for the office in the recent election Nov. 2024, which was won by Pres. Trump with more popular votes than the Democrat, and a solid victory in the Electoral College. A mandate if you will. I do not share your portrayal of Pres. Trump.
Dearest 750, I will politely ask you to refrain from driving your vehicle within 500ft of me and others, additionally, any personal decision making that you make that might affect innocents, again, please refrain from this activity as you must be questioned for your judgment and common sense. We warned you respectfully of your misguided support of the orange fuhrer. For your lack of knowledge and devotion to authoritarianism, you are a contributing part of the decline of this country. Have an awesome day!
Post a Comment