Free Republic

Dr. Mehmet Oz, newly sworn in as Administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), has exposed billions of dollars in fraud, waste, and abuse plaguing America’s healthcare safety nets. Appearing on America’s Newsroom with Bill Hemmer, Dr. Oz laid out a clear and urgent mission: protect the most vulnerable — not enrich bureaucrats, fraudsters, and corrupt insiders. “Right now, my main focus, without any question, is to wage a war on fraud, waste, and abuse — because that’s what’s required. All hands-on deck,” Dr. Oz said.

In 2022, California made sweeping changes to its Medi-Cal program that reimagined what health care could look like for some of the state’s poorest and sickest residents by covering services from housing to healthy food. But the future of that program, known as CalAIM, could be at risk under the Trump administration. In recent weeks, federal officials have signaled that support for creative uses of Medi-Cal funding is waning, particularly uses that California has invested in such as rent assistance and medically tailored meals. Medi-Cal is California’s name for Medicaid. The moves align with a narrower vision of Medicaid espoused...

California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed legislation Monday to close a $2.8 billion budget gap in the state's Medicaid services and ensure coverage through June for 15 million people, including immigrants, who receive health care via the program.

The House cleared a hurdle Thursday in adopting a budget resolution needed for filibuster-proof legislation on President Donald Trump’s policy priorities. But now, another obstacle stands in the way: how to find $1.5 trillion in spending cuts without cutting Medicaid benefits, as Trump and House leadership have promised. The budget resolution directs the House Energy and Commerce Committee to find $880 billion in savings — a feat that would prove extremely difficult without making deep cuts to Medicaid, the massive health program covering 72 million Americans, including low-income adults, children and people with disabilities. Some Republicans say they won’t support...

California has a $6.2 billion budget deficit for Medicaid services, and Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom's latest budget proposal projects the state will spend a staggering $8.4 billion to cover Medi-Cal, the state's version of Medicaid, for illegal immigrants in 2024-2025. Two new reports by the Bureau of Economic Analysis found the U.S. economy has become increasingly reliant on government handouts. Entitlements are growing faster than tax receipts and wages. Private wages grew by $67 billion in early 2025, while government payments to recipients surged by $162 billion. In North Carolina and California, growth in Medicaid benefits was the leading contributor...

Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz told state Medicaid directors Friday there will be no Medicaid funding for “gender reassignment” surgeries or hormone treatments for minors.“As a doctor and now CMS Administrator, my top priority is protecting children and upholding the law. Medicaid dollars are not to be used for gender reassignment surgeries or hormone treatments in minors – procedures that can cause permanent, irreversible harm, including sterilization,” Oz said in a written statement obtained by Breitbart News.“We have a duty to ensure medical care is lawful, necessary, and truly in the best interest of...

The Trump administration is targeting immigrants who have Social Security numbers but have lost their legal status in the U.S. — including those who entered under former President Joe Biden’s temporary work programs. This prevents those impacted from being able to receive Medicaid, Medicare, unemployment insurance, federal loans or other benefits.

Democrats love to portray themselves as the compassionate ones. They just want to help people, especially the poor and downtrodden. When you ask them about illegal immigration, they will tell you that these are just poor people looking for a better life for themselves and their families. That's why they were perfectly okay with a wide-open southern border and letting millions of people into the country. It was all about compassion. However, as the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) continues to dig into the twisted story of America's finances, we are finding out that the compassion ruse is just that,...

Illegal immigrants are claiming billions of dollars worth of Medicaid and other US benefits, according to data uncovered by the head of DOGE's border team. Antonio Gracias said around 1.3 million non-citizens are currently claiming Medicaid, at an estimated cost of around $6.5 billion. The stark revelation came after Gracias and his team began probing the huge uptick in non-citizens who were assigned Social Security numbers last year. The figure leapt from 400,000 in 2021, to more than two million in 2024. Among those are people who have entered the US legally on visas and green cards and who pay...

He claims he was instructed to intentionally reduce detention capacity across the country while simultaneously issuing new Social Security numbers to undocumented immigrants. According to Heitke, this enabled them to access full Social Security benefits and Medicaid, facilitated their voter registration, and ultimately PERMITTED them to CAST VOTES in U.S. ELECTIONS.

Washington, D.C. — March 27, 2025 — Today, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced a dramatic restructuring in accordance with President Trump's Executive Order, “Implementing the President’s ‘Department of Government Efficiency’ Workforce Optimization Initiative.”The restructuring will address this and serve multiple goals without impacting critical services. First, it will save taxpayers $1.8 billion per year through a reduction in workforce of about 10,000 full-time employees who are part of this most recent transformation. When combined with HHS’ other efforts, including early retirement and Fork in the Road, the restructuring results in a total downsizing from 82,000...

California will lose millions of dollars in federal matching funds for the state’s Medicaid program, Medi-Cal, after Governor Gavin Newsom’s administration failed to fill out the necessary paperwork by a March 31 deadline. CalMatters.org reported: California voters told lawmakers last fall that they wanted doctors to get paid more to see low-income patients. But officials for the Newsom administration blew past a federal deadline to make that happen through Medi-Cal Monday, effectively leaving millions of dollars unclaimed. The unclaimed money is tied to Proposition 35, a ballot measure passed by 68% of voters in November. The measure committed money from...

A former director of Planned Parenthood confirms that the abortion business routinely engages in Medicaid fraud. The U.S. Supreme Court will hear arguments on Wednesday in the case of Medina v. Planned Parenthood South Atlantic, which deals with a huge part of Planned Parenthood’s funding stream: Medicaid reimbursements. Abby Johnson, who ran a Planned Parenthood facility before she became pro-life, describes how the abortion company regularly engages in Medicaid fraud – and she says that’s a great reason to defund Planned Parenthood. “We rarely saw women at the Planned Parenthood I worked at in Texas for anything other than abortion,...

Billionaire entrepreneur and Trump advisor Elon Musk dropped a bombshell this weekend during a fiery 100-minute town hall in Green Bay, Wisconsin, where he campaigned for conservative judge Brad Schimel in the state’s upcoming Supreme Court election on Tuesday.Joined by Antonio Gracias, a private equity titan and a key member of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) team tasked with rooting out waste in the federal government, Musk unveiled a shocking chart: a dramatic spike in Social Security Numbers issued to non-citizens, soaring from 270,000 in 2021 to a mind-blowing 2.1 million in 2024.That’s almost 5 million non-citizens now embedded...

In 2024, the number of Social Security Numbers issued to non-citizens in the United States increased significantly, reaching 2.1 million from 270,000 in 2021. This increase has sparked discussions about potential fraud within the Social Security system. Non-citizens can legally obtain Social Security Numbers through various pathways, such as asylum claims and work authorization, which allows them access to certain benefit programs like Medicaid. Authorities are investigating these trends to address any fraudulent activities and ensure the integrity of the system

With one stroke, Congress can deliver on three of President Trump’s biggest priorities: Discourage illegal immigration, reform a broken welfare program and save taxpayers billions. It can all be done if Republicans roll back Medicaid for illegal aliens in their coming reconciliation bill. As we show in our new report for the Foundation for Government Accountability, migrants have been allowed and even encouraged to abuse Medicaid — at enormous cost to Americans. Medicaid was created for low-income citizens and lawful residents. But for more than a decade, and especially under Joe Biden, states have corrupted the program by letting it...

Taxpayer-funded abortion is increasing at the state level as pro-abortion lawmakers work to expand abortion since the reversal of Roe v. Wade. Federally, the Hyde Amendment prohibits most taxpayer funding of abortion, allowing funding only in cases of rape, incest, or when the physician determines the pregnant mother’s life is at risk. But while the Hyde Amendment prevents most abortions from being paid for by federal tax dollars, each state can determine its own taxpayer funding for abortion. According to the pro-abortion organization KFF.org (The Kaiser Family Foundation), “There is tremendous variability in how much states reimburse for abortion services...

On Tuesday’s broadcast of NewsNation’s “Cuomo,” Rep. Brad Sherman (D-CA) discussed the state’s Medicaid shortfall and said that California is “fine.” But “The depression in the stock market will hurt California over the next ten years.” And that the state has to provide Medicaid to illegal immigrants “so that we all don’t get infectious diseases.” Sherman said, “California’s fine. We rely significantly on taxing wealthy people on capital gains. The depression in the stock market will hurt California over the next ten years. You cannot treat a family by only treating some family members. If you don’t treat COVID in...

In 2022 there were approximately 22 maternal deaths for every 100,000 live births in the United States — far above rates for other high-income countries. U.S. maternal mortality is lowest for Asian American women and highest for Black women. Maternal death rates increased in Australia, Japan, the Netherlands, and the U.S. during the height of the pandemic, between 2020 and 2021. In Chile, Norway, and the U.S., where 2022 data are available, maternal death rates have begun to decline. Nearly two of three maternal deaths in the U.S. occur during the postpartum period, up to 42 days following birth. Compared...

Gov. Newsom is abusing the Medicaid system to pay for illegal immigrants’ health care and taking more money from taxpayers in other states.In 2024, California Gov. Gavin Newsom proudly made California the first state to offer medical care for people who entered the country illegally and reside in the Golden State. However, the cost, estimated at almost $8 billion, is being paid by all taxpayers, not just Californians.Do people in Texas, North Carolina, and hyper-taxed Illinois want to fund California’s 700,000 illegal immigrants? They don’t have a choice. Newsom is using Medi-Cal, California’s Medicaid safety net program, and the federal...