Trump Administration Expands Medicaid Fraud Crackdown to Florida 'Hotspot'

The Trump administration has broadened its Medicaid fraud crackdown to Florida, with CMS Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz sending a March 17 letter to Gov. Ron DeSantis and other state leaders demanding detailed information on how the state detects and prevents fraud in its Medicaid program within 30 days. Oz, who has already targeted New York, Minnesota, Maine and California, publicly labeled Florida a longstanding 'hotspot for health care fraud' and said CMS needs more detail on oversight given high‑dollar Medicare and Medicaid schemes previously prosecuted there. The move comes one day after President Donald Trump signed an executive order creating a federal anti‑fraud task force for benefit programs led by Vice President JD Vance, part of a pre‑election push to respond to voter anxiety over affordability and perceived government waste. Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier welcomed the outreach and highlighted a recent Medicaid‑fraud arrest, while Minnesota’s Democratic governor continues to denounce CMS’s earlier decision to halt that state’s Medicaid payments over fraud concerns as politically motivated. CMS is also freezing new Medicare enrollments for durable medical equipment and related suppliers for six months to curb suspected improper billing, signaling a broader federal effort to squeeze health‑care fraud that could affect providers and patients in multiple states.