Vance says $1.3 billion in Medicaid payments to California will be deferred over fraud concerns

[BumRushDaShow]

Source: Los Angles Times

May 13, 2026 3:29 PM PT


Vice President JD Vance said Wednesday that the Trump administration is deferring $1.3 billion in Medicaid reimbursements to California over concerns the state is allowing “fraudsters” to drive up costs to taxpayers, including by pushing unnecessary medications on unsuspecting patients.

“There are California taxpayers and American taxpayers who are being defrauded because California isn’t taking its program seriously. But also, you have people who’ve been prescribed medications that they don’t even need,” Vance said. “Sometimes they’ve had drugs put into their bodies that they don’t need because fraudsters have actually encouraged false prescriptions and false administration and medications.”

Vance, standing alongside Dr. Mehmet Oz, the administrator for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, said the administration is also sending letters to all 50 states informing them that if they do not “effectively and aggressively prosecute Medicaid fraud in their states,” they will see federal funding cut off as well.

“We want California to get serious about this fraud,” said Vance, who President Trump named his “fraud czar” last month.

Read more: https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2026-05-13/vance-says-1-3-billion-in-medicaid-payments-to-california-will-be-deferred-over-fraud-concerns

[kerouac2]

1. OMG such brazen hypocrisy. 5.25 million ring a bell Doc Oz

These thugs do whatever they want and say whatever they want over and over again. Hello? Oz is a.fraudster.

The $5.25 Million False Advertising Settlement

In 2018, Dr. Oz and his corporate partners reached a $5.25 million settlement to resolve a consumer class-action lawsuit in California federal court.

Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP
+1
The Accusations: Consumers accused Oz of false advertising, arguing that he knowingly overstated the benefits of dietary supplements like Garcinia Cambogia and Green Coffee Bean Extract.
The "Miracle" Claims: On air, Oz pitched these products as a "magic weight-loss cure" and a "revolutionary fat buster". In reality, no credible scientific evidence backed up those claims.
Paid Promotion Allegations: While Oz frequently told viewers he had no retail stake in the products, the lawsuit alleged that Oz and his featured guest doctors were actually being compensated by the manufacturing entities to market the supplements.

[Roy Rolling]

2. Who fucking cares what he says?

Couch-fucker has no legal authority to withhold Congressionally-funded programs.

[BillJoeBobBeauregard]

6. Exactly

What's with all the defeatist comments? This will go to court and newsom and california will win

[SunSeeker]

3. Absolutely no evidence that CA should be singled out. This is purely political.

And it will hurt people already devastated by Trump’s cut of ACA funding.

[orangecrush]

4. Newsom should withhold that amount of any payment of any kind

To the federal government.

[azureblue]

9. the idiots

forget that CA is the fourth largest economy in the world, and CA money keeps several red states afloat. States whose Republican fiscal policies fail. Maybe CA should just stop sending money to red states, and use that for its own people..

[BillJoeBobBeauregard]

5. The power of the purse resides with Congress, guys

He isnt at liberty to do this.

[twodogsbarking]

7. "fraudsters have actually encouraged false prescriptions and false administration and medications."

Shouldn't you be going after the criminals not the victims?

[azureblue]

11. Like Rick Scott

NT

[GiqueCee]

12. And, even more importantly...

... shouldn't Sofa-boy offer some proof that his accusations have merit? Republicans' reputation for veracity is more than a little bit tattered, so no one with an intellectual capacity exceeding that of a potted plant should take his word for anything.

[mb40]

8. I hate this administration so much. They are attacking poor people in a blue state again.

You call yourself prolife Vance? Deferring 1.3 billion for poor people's healthcare and threatening Medicaid in other states? Call it what it is...the petty tyrant's cruel vendetta against people that didn't vote for him.

Speaking of what is not needed, Trump is trying to defraud taxpayers 1 billion for his ballroom and hundreds of billions if not more for a totally unnecessary war that is making American's lives even more difficult. This administration is defrauding taxpayers on a massive scale.

[Exp]

10. The POOR suckers in the Red Districts are the ones who take MOST of the Medicare benefits. eom

[Envirogal]

13. Lest we remind you, CA is a DONOR state

It’s quite the hubris to single out California for “fraud” when this is the most corrupt and fraudulent administration in history. So my suggestion is California quits playing the Cons games of “will they fund or won’t they” and withhold our FEDERAL DONATIONS to their salaries and red state subsidies until Dear Leader and his sycophants commits to our share of the money back to help meet CA’s needs.

Since 2016, Sleepy Don has been trying to attack and undermine California in every way he can think of. Even during COVID, his son-in-law’s goons were stealing our PPE supplies at the airport runway to make up for their ineptness and distributing them to red states.

Frankly, we are innovative, willing to do bold things, but are constantly hampered or punished or exploited by the Cons in business and government. It is more than obvious at this point that the United States needs California more than California needs the United States.