Federal Medicaid Fraud Dragnet Widens: Florida Added to Probe, Minnesota Report Cites $9 Billion in Questionable Payments

Two States, One Very Expensive Problem

Federal scrutiny of Medicaid fraud has been building for months. As of June 15, 2026, two separate but related stories have converged into one uncomfortable picture: the U.S. government has been hemorrhaging tens of billions of dollars through health and nutrition programs, and state officials in both red and blue states have struggled, or in some cases allegedly refused, to stop it.

Florida Under Federal Scrutiny

Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz announced that Florida has become the fifth state targeted in the Trump administration's expanding Medicaid fraud investigation. According to Fox 13 News, Oz called the level of fraud in Florida "horrifying" and alleged that bad actors have stolen "tens of billions of taxpayer dollars" meant for vulnerable populations.

Oz sent a letter to Governor Ron DeSantis and other Florida leaders demanding information on how the state identifies, prevents, and addresses Medicaid fraud. He specifically called out South Florida as a national epicenter for durable medical equipment fraud. "The number one fraud area for durable medical equipment is South Florida," Oz told Fox 13. "There are twice as many companies involved in durable medical equipment supplies than McDonald's there."

CMS announced a six-month moratorium on certain durable medical equipment providers in the state, covering companies that supply items like wheelchairs and canes.

Florida officials say they are not pushing back. Attorney General James Uthmeier wrote on X that "the Medicaid system is overwhelmed with fraud and abuse" and expressed willingness to work with Oz. DeSantis chief of staff Jason Weida said the state has already been coordinating with the Trump administration.

The Florida investigation is notable because it is the first Republican-governed state publicly targeted in this round of probes, according to Fox 13. This undercuts any narrative that the crackdown is politically selective.

Minnesota: A 205-Page Indictment of State Leadership

The Minnesota situation is older and more documented. The Republican-led House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform released a 205-page report accusing senior Minnesota officials of ignoring fraud warnings that date to 2019, according to CBS News Minnesota.

Committee Chairman James Comer of Kentucky said the report found that Governor Tim Walz and Attorney General Keith Ellison "are responsible for one of the most stunning oversight failures this Committee has ever examined." Investigators allege that state officials had the authority to stop payments and ban fraudulent providers but failed to act, and that state employees who raised concerns faced retaliation and intimidation.

The numbers: roughly $300 million in confirmed meal-program fraud connected to the Feeding Our Future case, and potentially $9 billion more in questionable Medicaid payments flagged by investigators.

Comer sent a letter to Vice President JD Vance urging a White House Task Force review of Minnesota's social services programs back to 2019. Vance said on social media he referred the allegations to the Department of Justice. "If state officials...facilitated fraud or looked the other way...they must be held accountable," Vance wrote.

The Strongest Defense of Walz and Ellison

Walz's office dismissed the House Oversight Committee as "a joke," according to CBS News. Walz testified before the committee in March and has argued that his administration was working within legal constraints and federal program rules that made clawing back fraudulent payments difficult. Critics of the Comer investigation argue it is politically motivated, released while Walz remains a prominent national Democratic figure following his 2024 vice-presidential run, and that the committee is selectively targeting blue-state officials for failures that exist across the country.

Medicaid fraud is a national problem, not a Minnesota problem. But the specific allegations here, that whistleblowers were retaliated against and that officials with authority to act declined to use it, go beyond ordinary bureaucratic failure. Those allegations are as yet unproven, and no criminal charges against Walz or Ellison have been filed. The committee report is a congressional document, not a court verdict.

The 340B Connection

Fox News reported on a separate but related case: a Florida man sentenced for a $58 million Medicare fraud scheme that exploited the federal 340B drug discount program. The 340B program is designed to allow safety-net hospitals and clinics to buy drugs at reduced prices, but it has become a documented fraud vector. Congress has been examining the program's vulnerabilities. The Florida sentencing adds a specific criminal data point to what has otherwise been a pattern of alleged administrative negligence.

What Happens Next

The central question is whether any of this leads to criminal accountability above the provider level. Providers and clinic operators have been charged and convicted. No state official in Minnesota has been charged, and no federal investigation of Walz or Ellison has been publicly announced. Vance's referral to the DOJ is on record, but a referral is not an investigation, and an investigation is not a charge. Whether the DOJ acts on the Minnesota referral, and on what timeline, will determine whether this becomes a landmark accountability moment or another congressional report that fades without consequence.