When the administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services says Minnesota is only the “tip of the iceberg,” Americans should sit up and pay attention. Dr. Mehmet Oz stunned listeners by warning that the scale of fraud in California’s hospice and home-health systems could approach $4 billion — a devastating blow to taxpayers and the seniors who depend on these programs.
This isn’t abstract bureaucratic talk; CMS has already begun withholding billions in federal payments while it audits suspicious claims and demands corrective action. If state officials think they can sweep this under the rug or pretend audits are political theater, they’re fooling no one — the federal government is moving because fraud of this size betrays the public trust.
Dr. Oz described a culture of tolerance for rip-offs in parts of Los Angeles and elsewhere, where beneficiary data is allegedly stolen and weaponized for fraudulent billing. That kind of systemized theft isn’t a policy disagreement — it’s organized theft from the most vulnerable and from the American taxpayer, and it requires prosecutions, not press releases.
Make no mistake: political convenience has consequences. When local leaders prioritize votes or narratives over accountability, they create the conditions for bad actors to thrive. Conservatives are right to call out the double standard — when fraud hurts people, there should be one standard of law enforcement across blue states and red states alike.
The remedy is straightforward: aggressive audits, criminal referrals, and immediate clawbacks of funds matched by vigorous state cooperation. Congress should also demand transparency and give prosecutors the resources to follow the money, because cutting waste and fraud is the pro-taxpayer, pro-senior policy.
Enough with the excuses and the platitudes. Patriots who care about fiscal sanity and protecting American seniors must press their representatives, support whistleblowers, and insist that the people running these programs be held accountable. We can rebuild integrity in Medicare and Medicaid, but only if we refuse to let partisan protectionism stand in the way of justice.
