A nonpartisan report released by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) on Tuesday concluded that the data hub and federal exchanges created under the Affordable Care Act – Obamacare – lack oversight and have insufficient eligibility controls.
U.S. Reps. Fred Upton (R-MI), the chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, and Kevin Brady (R-TX), the chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, were joined by U.S. Sens. Orrin Hatch (R-UT), the chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, and Rob Portman (R-OH), in releasing the GAO report.
The report found that the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) ignored opportunities to reduce fraud and failed to resolve a third of applicant inconsistencies connected to $1.7 billion in subsidies in 2014.
“One thing is clear — CMS has been asleep at the wheel with billions of taxpayer dollars at risk,” Upton said. “This laundry list of concerns showcases systemic problems throughout Obamacare, and broad mismanagement at CMS. These complex, massive problems represent what we’ve known all along – Obamacare is full of broken promises.”
The GAO report also found that CMS didn’t resolve Social Security number inconsistencies for approximately 35,000 applications, opening up $154 million in subsidies for illegal aliens or fraudsters.
“The president’s healthcare law has been riddled with problems since day one, and millions of Texans have suffered the consequences,” Brady said. “The systemic failures highlighted in GAO’s new report are further proof Obamacare is not working and must be repealed and replaced. We cannot afford to waste another taxpayer dollar on this broken healthcare system.”
Additionally, CMS didn’t resolve incarceration inconsistencies for 22,000 applicants, resulting in $68 million in subsidies.
“As the health law nears its sixth year on the books, the administration continues to put enrollment numbers ahead of protecting taxpayers,” Hatch said. “This was predicted. When Democrats were forcing the law through Congress, Republicans repeatedly warned the law’s tax credits would be susceptible to waste, fraud and abuse. Now, as the Congress’s nonpartisan watchdog confirms, billions of taxpayer dollars continue to be at risk due to the administration’s gross inability to implement a working verification system on the federal exchange. The administration owes it to taxpayers to follow GAO’s recommendations and come clean on this egregious waste of taxpayer dollars.”
Portman said the GAO report highlights Department of Health and Human Services problems verifying subsidy eligibility and underscores the need for more oversight.