Vice President JD Vance on Tuesday defended the Trump administration’s expanding anti-fraud campaign during a White House roundtable with state attorneys general and federal officials, saying government fraud hurts both taxpayers and vulnerable Americans who depend on public programs.
“Everybody should care about fraud. Everybody should care about rooting out fraud. Everybody should care about saving the American taxpayers money,” Vance said during the meeting focused on Medicaid, benefits and student aid fraud.
Vance said the administration has identified billions of dollars in suspected fraud in just two months. According to Vance, officials referred more than $22 billion in allegedly fraudulent small business loans back to the Treasury for collection, deferred over $1.3 billion in suspected Medicaid reimbursements and identified $6.3 billion in potentially fraudulent government contracts.
He also said the administration blocked $60 million in student aid fraud and paused enrollments for new hospice and home healthcare providers after officials allegedly found providers billing the government without delivering services.
Vance said the administration is partnering with state attorneys general across the country to strengthen fraud investigations and prosecutions.
Fraud Push
Vance said fraud is “not a victimless crime” and argued that abuse of government programs harms students, small businesses, elderly Americans and patients relying on hospice care. “All of our fellow Americans have been taken advantage of by fraudsters and the task force is here to stop it,” he said.
The vice president also highlighted a recent Minnesota case involving a caregiver accused of collecting Medicaid reimbursements while allegedly failing to provide care to an elderly man who later died after months of neglect.
Federal Trade Commission Chairman Andrew Ferguson said widespread fraud had weakened trust in public benefits systems and argued stronger federal-state coordination was needed to prosecute fraudsters. White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller said many benefits programs operate on an “honor system” and claimed weak verification systems enabled widespread abuse. “We don’t even check if you even have children. You will just start getting the checks,” Miller said.
Medicaid Focus
The latest remarks come as the Trump administration expands its broader crackdown on Medicaid and benefits fraud nationwide. In April, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Administrator Mehmet Oz ordered all 50 states to submit Medicaid provider revalidation plans and warned states that failed to strengthen oversight could face tougher federal audits.
The administration has also taken direct action against several states over alleged fraud concerns. Federal officials temporarily halted portions of Medicaid funding tied to Minnesota and deferred more than $1.3 billion in reimbursements linked to California while reviewing suspected fraudulent claims and healthcare spending practices.
The broader crackdown has also included major healthcare fraud prosecutions. Earlier this month, a Florida healthcare executive was convicted in a scheme prosecutors said generated more than $1 billion in fraudulent Medicare claims.
Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
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