Hhs Withholds $867 Million In Medicaid Payments To California As Part Of 'crackdown On Fraud'

In nan latest salvo successful nan warfare betwixt nan Trump management and California, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy jr. said Tuesday his agency withheld $867.5 cardinal successful Medicaid payments to nan authorities complete concerns astir fraud.

Kennedy besides said his agency defered $199 cardinal successful Medicaid payments to Minnesota complete akin concerns.

“If Gov. Gavin Newsom aliases Gov. Tim Walz wants this backing released, each they person to do is supply basal archiving showing that these services are morganatic and not fraudulent,” Kennedy said astatine a news conference.

Just nether half of nan costs withheld from California were successful relationship pinch in-home wellness services.

Dr. Mehmet Oz, nan administrator for nan Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, said California’s spending connected in-home wellness services went up by much than double nan nationalist mean complete nan past 2 fiscal years.

“That doesn’t make sense,” he said.

About a 4th of nan costs withheld progressive attraction provided to individuals pinch “unsatisfactory migration status,” whose eligibility to beryllium successful nan state and person these services is successful question, which Oz characterized arsenic an “ongoing monolithic problem for California.”

The announcement by Kennedy and Oz connected Tuesday comes 2 months aft Vice President JD Vance announced that nan administration would beryllium deferring $1.3 cardinal successful Medicaid payments complete fraud concerns, mostly connected to hospice services and in-home healthcare.

Newsom’s office, successful a societal media post, called nan announcement a “recycled governmental stunt.”

“California isn’t being targeted because Trump has grounds of fraud,” nan station said. “We are being targeted for governmental reasons — and because Dr. Oz doesn’t understand that we are *SAVING* taxpayers money by keeping seniors and group pinch disabilities retired of acold much costly nursing homes!”

Newsom’s agency besides said that nan authorities stands “ready to collaborate” pinch nan Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services “in bully religion efforts to combat fraud.”

The agency of California Atty. Gen. Rob Bonta said it is reviewing nan deferral of payments and allegations of fraud.

“We person not hesitated to situation unlawful actions by nan Trump administration, and we will proceed to enactment whenever Californians’ authorities aliases entree to captious services are threatened,” Bonta’s agency said.

Despite Newsom’s claims that nan accusations are political, nan California State Auditor has many times flagged Medi-Cal eligibility discrepancies that person exposed nan authorities to billions of dollars successful questionable payments.

Newsom and Oz person fought before.

Newsom filed a civilian authorities complaint successful January against Oz, aft Oz posted a video to societal media from Van Nuys successful which he accused nan “Russian Armenian mafia” of being a starring driver of $3.5 cardinal successful fraud successful hospice and location attraction services.

Newsom said that Oz’s claims were “baseless and racist.”

The announcement by Kennedy and Oz connected Tuesday is nan latest effort by nan Trump management to ace down connected suspected Medicaid fraud in galore states crossed nan country.