Dr. Mehmet Oz, a physician and commentator, told Fox News Digital that Medicaid fraud has become a “feature” in some Democratic-led states and urged governors to cooperate with a federal anti-fraud initiative. Oz framed his remarks as observations based on federal audit activity and reporting, and he repeatedly characterized his statements as allegations rather than established findings.
Quick take
Oz told Fox News Digital that Medicaid fraud is a self-reinforcing problem in certain “blue” states, arguing that federal Medicaid dollars can be redirected in ways that create political and economic incentives for local actors. He cited a reported cut of more than $1.3 billion in California Medicaid reimbursements as an example of federal oversight actions, and he said a new administration task force — which he described as involving Sen. J.D. Vance — aims to tighten audits and pause payments when questions arise.
What Oz said on Medicaid fraud
In the interview, Oz repeatedly used the phrase “Medicaid-ing it” to describe what he called the routine diversion or misuse of federal Medicaid funds in some states. “I began to realize that stealing money from Medicaid is not a flaw for a lot of states, it’s a feature of the program,” he said on camera, framing the comment as his interpretation of observed patterns.
On unions and political funding, Oz alleged that when Medicaid-funded workforces organize, “that gets union dues into their coffers, those union dues can now pay for political action committees, funding. Of course, one party — always.” He presented this as part of a cycle that, in his view, can blunt state-level support for aggressive federal anti-fraud enforcement.
Oz also accused some governors of resisting stronger oversight. “Why would you steal money from Medicaid?” he asked, and added that political incentives can make it difficult for state leaders to back reforms he said would reduce these practices. He identified Gov. Gavin Newsom as a leader of a large Democratic-led state he said had not matched audit warnings with sufficient corrective action; those characterizations are Oz’s assertions and are presented here as such.
Federal actions and the California cut
Oz pointed to federal enforcement steps as evidence the administration is acting on audit findings. He cited reporting that federal reviewers moved to withhold or reduce more than $1.3 billion in California Medicaid reimbursements after raising questions about documentation and oversight. That figure and the payment moves are described in the interview and related reporting; this article attributes those accounts to Oz and the reporting he referenced.
Speaking about federal oversight, Oz said the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) had paused or adjusted payments in some instances while seeking clearer accounting of where federal dollars were going. “We can’t understand where the money’s going,” he told Fox News Digital, and said federal officials must verify eligibility and services before resuming full payments. Those comments reflect his view of CMS’s role and responsibilities as conveyed in the interview.
Political and union claims
Oz linked alleged misuse of Medicaid funds to political dynamics. He said the creation of Medicaid-funded programs can generate employment and services that, when unionized, create funding streams that flow into political action. “That gets union dues into their coffers,” he said, arguing the cycle can protect certain spending patterns from scrutiny. These are assertions Oz made on the record.
He suggested that political considerations can make some governors reluctant to work with federal auditors, saying state officials sometimes prioritize local political calculations over cooperation. Oz emphasized that stronger state-federal cooperation would be needed to restore regular reimbursement flows, framing noncooperation as a barrier to resolving alleged problems.
What comes next
Oz described a new anti-fraud push tied to the administration that, in his account, involves Sen. J.D. Vance helping to coordinate a task force aimed at tightening verification and audit procedures. He said the effort seeks to standardize federal oversight, press states to adopt stronger checks, and pause payments where documentation is insufficient. The characterization of the task force and Vance’s role is Oz’s description and is presented here as such.
He urged governors to “get on board” with the federal effort and warned that when state and federal actors are not aligned, progress stalls. “When they’re pulling the oars in the opposite direction, efforts to stop abuse stall,” Oz said, calling for clearer audits and faster cooperation to restore confidence in reimbursements.
Source attribution
The assertions in this story are based on an interview Dr. Mehmet Oz gave to Fox News Digital and related reporting cited during that interview. The claims above are attributed to Oz and to the reporting he referenced; they have not been independently verified by this outlet.
Source: Fox News Digital interview with Dr. Mehmet Oz — https://www.foxnews.com/politics/watch-dr-oz-says-newsom-other-blue-states-turned-medicaid-fraud-feature
