WASHINGTON, D.C. – Ways and Means Committee Chairman Jason Smith (MO-08) released the following statement after the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) noticed a proposed rule reining in the Biden Administration’s reckless expansion of Obamacare that has resulted in as many as five million fraudulent enrollments and $20 billion in improper payments annually. The rule follows letters Chairman Smith sent to the HHS Office of Inspector General (OIG) and Government Accountability Office (GAO) demanding information on the potential fraud implications of the Biden-era changes.
Chairman Smith said, “Joe Biden’s reckless Obamacare expansion has not only been a disaster for taxpayers and a goldmine for fraudsters, but it has also failed to meaningfully increase health care access for Americans and has instead driven up the cost of coverage for all. I applaud President Trump and Secretary Kennedy for addressing the corruption and abuse from this expansion while also lowering costs for Americans and patients.
“Washington Democrat policies from the last four years have increased Obamacare spending by more than $500 billion this decade, and making their COVID-era handouts permanent would add another $383 billion in untargeted taxpayer spending. This was never about helping Americans afford care. It was about locking more people into government programs and keeping them there. Under President Trump’s first Administration, we made real progress in stopping waste, fraud, and abuse. This proposed rule helps us get back there. There’s still more work to do, and Ways and Means Republicans are ready to fight to protect taxpayers, expose corruption, and advance solutions that actually make health care more accessible and affordable for the American people.”