Dr. Oz Leads Ohio Visit to Target Medicaid Fraud Exposed by Daily Wire Investigation

Columbus, Ohio – Dr. Mehmet Oz, Administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, visited Ohio this week to support state efforts cracking down on Medicaid fraud in home health care services, following a major investigative series by The Daily Wire.

Oz met with Governor Mike DeWine and highlighted specific cases of abuse uncovered in Franklin County, where clusters of home health companies billed Medicaid hundreds of millions while providing questionable or nonexistent services. He stood outside the former site of La Belle Home Health Care, whose owner was sentenced to over three years in prison for a $5.7 million fraud scheme involving inflated billing for unregistered nurses and services to ineligible or deceased recipients.

"Fraudsters have been treating Medicaid like a piggy bank, but it ends now," Oz stated. "Ohio is showing what happens when data meets accountability. We followed the money and caught the crooks."

The Daily Wire's reporting revealed 288 Medicaid companies operating from just seven buildings in the area, billing over $250 million between 2018 and 2024. State data showed nearly half of personal care claims lacked electronic verification of services provided.

Oz praised Ohio's actions, including payment freezes and restored anti-fraud measures, while calling for stronger guardrails nationwide on home health providers. He expressed trust in DeWine's leadership to address gaps in data sharing between federal and state systems.

This Ohio effort forms part of the Trump administration's broader push, led by Vice President JD Vance's Task Force to Eliminate Fraud. The initiative targets waste across states, with actions including funding deferrals and provider revalidations.

Medicaid fraud represents one element of widespread improper payments and abuse uncovered so far in the national program. Federal reviews continue to identify similar vulnerabilities elsewhere, signaling additional enforcement actions ahead to safeguard taxpayer funds and protect services for legitimate recipients.