Overview
- Vice President JD Vance used a Wednesday news conference to roll out a six-month freeze on new Medicare enrollments for home health and hospice agencies.
- The moratorium blocks new providers from billing Medicare while leaving existing agencies in place, which could delay openings and reduce options for patients in some areas.
- He also said the federal government will defer $1.3 billion in Medicaid reimbursements to California, arguing the state has not taken fraud seriously.
- CMS said it is acting to fight fraud, yet Administrator Mehmet Oz did not present specific nationwide evidence and such pauses have usually been limited to select counties, like Miami-Dade in 2013.
- With President Trump in China, Vance joked the White House felt like “Home Alone,” noted Secret Service rules keep him stateside, and downplayed talk that Trump is “toying” with him and Marco Rubio over succession.