‘There’s about $14 billion we’ve identified with DOGE, of folks who are duly enrolled wrongly in multiple states for Medicaid,’ Dr. Oz says.
Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz said that his agency and the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) have identified at least $14 billion in fraud, waste, and abuse.
“There’s about $14 billion we’ve identified with DOGE, of folks who are duly enrolled wrongly in multiple states for Medicaid,” Oz told Fox News’s “Sunday Morning Futures.”
As an example, Oz said, “You live in New Jersey, but you move to Pennsylvania, and which state gets your Medicaid? Turns out both states collect money from the federal government.”
There are other areas, he said, that constitute abuse of the federal health care system. He said that some people who are eligible to get a job or seek education are receiving Medicaid, echoing statements made by GOP lawmakers, including House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) and Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.). who in recent days said that able-bodied individuals and illegal immigrants have received Medicaid benefits.
Oz urged that Medicaid be cleaned up so that it can provide services to individuals such as people with disabilities and others, suggesting that Republicans keep a work requirement to be eligible for the program.
“I think there’s a moral hazard if we don’t, because you’ve got people who are not working who could work, who should work, and it’s better for them and better for the country if they do,” he said, referring to Republicans’ having added work requirements into to the One Big Beautiful Bill Act that passed in the House of Representatives last week.
Medicaid is a joint federal and state program that helps cover medical costs for certain people with limited income or resources, while Medicare is federal health insurance for people aged 65 and older and some individuals under that age with certain disabilities or conditions.
The bill, which is now in the hands of the Senate, would impose work requirements for low-income adults to receive Medicaid health insurance and increase them for food assistance. Supporters of the bill say the moves will save money, root out waste, and encourage personal responsibility.
