In this Conservative Institute article, Melissa Gentry reports that CMS Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz claims as many as 35 percent of Obamacare exchange enrollments may be fraudulent or illegitimate.
- Oz said the Affordable Care Act exchange population rose from roughly nine million people in the 2015–2020 period to more than 20 million today.
- He argued that the surge was not simply driven by greater need, but by the removal of eligibility “guardrails” under prior CMS leadership.
- According to Oz, CMS believes five to six million people may be enrolled in plans for which taxpayers are paying premiums even though the coverage has never been used.
- Oz cited enrollees who have never filed a claim as a key warning sign, though the article notes that lack of claims does not automatically prove fraud.
- He described alleged schemes involving brokers enrolling Medicaid recipients in ACA plans without their knowledge to generate commissions.
- He also said some individuals appear to be enrolled in ACA plans in multiple states at the same time.
- The administration previously tried to implement a rule targeting ACA fraud, but a court blocked it on Administrative Procedure Act grounds.
- Oz said the administration revised the rule and reissued it roughly two weeks before the briefing.
- The article argues that if the numbers hold up, the findings could undermine years of Democratic claims that rising ACA enrollment proved the program’s success.
- The piece concludes that CMS must publish hard data, methodology, and enforcement results before the 35 percent figure can move from political claim to verified evidence.
Read the full story: https://conservativeinstitute.org/justice/dr-oz-says-35-percent-of-obamacare-enrollments-may-be-fraudulent-citing-millions-of-phantom-sign-ups.htm
