Over recent months, my conservative colleagues and I have been quite vocal in our opposition to Democrats’ push to extend COVID-era subsidies under Obamacare, also known as the so-called Affordable Care Act (ACA).
Back in September, I joined several of my House Freedom Caucus colleagues in penning an op-ed explaining why Congress should allow these temporary subsidies to expire, as they are costly, riddled with fraud, and go directly toward eliminating competitive free market options and enriching health insurance companies.
As you may know, these enhanced subsidies are set to expire at the end of this year. In response, Democrats are ramping up their scare tactics in an attempt to pressure lawmakers to pass legislation that extends the subsidies for several more years.
Yet a bombshell Government Accountability Office (GAO) report confirms what Republicans have been saying all along: These UnAffordable Care Act subsidies are plagued with fraud.
As part of its analysis, the GAO conducted covert testing of the program, which included creating and submitting fictitious identities. 100% of fake applicants were approved by the ACA marketplace as recently as last year, and 90% of fake applicants continue to receive coverage in 2025.
To make matters worse, marketplaces approved coverage even when no documents were requested or fake documents were submitted. This includes fake citizenship eligibility documents — confirming our long-held fraud concerns for illegal aliens. Keep in mind, your hard-earned tax dollars are funding these fraudulent ACA subsidies, which subsequently line the pockets of health insurance companies. In fact, monthly subsidies paid to health insurers on behalf of GAO’s fake identities exceeded $12,300 per month.
Other explosive findings involve a shocking, widespread misuse of Social Security Numbers (SSN), including:
- In 2023, one single SSN was used on applications for over 125 insurance policies totaling over 26,000 days of coverage, the equivalent of 71 years.
- 58,000 SSNs receiving COVID-era Obamacare subsidies matched Social Security death data.
- At least 7,000 were dead before coverage even began, meaning the applications used SSNs of deceased individuals.
- $94 million in taxpayer-funded subsidies were sent to health insurers on behalf of deceased individuals.
Folks, this fraud demands an immediate fix and prosecution for those responsible for these crimes.
While Democrats want your tax dollars to keep funding their fraudulent, broken system, Republicans want to fix it.
Please know that my House and Senate Republican colleagues and I are working on solutions to lower both premium and service costs and to empower patients. After all, health care reform should be about freedom, choice, and affordability — not more subsidies, fraud, and government control.
