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FEDERALhearing transcript

Congressional Hearing: Fraud, Waste, and Abuse in the Affordable Care Act

Original title: FRAUD, WASTE, AND ABUSE UNDER THE AFFORDABLE CARE ACT

January 1, 2017

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The Frame

What this does

The hearing serves as a formal legislative inquiry into the financial integrity and performance of the Affordable Care Act, which directly impacts the insurance premiums and coverage costs for millions of Americans.

Who is mentioned in the record

Potentially affected actors named in the source documents. Mention is not a position.

Health insurance policyholders

Individuals are affected by the premium and deductible changes discussed in the hearing.

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

The agency is subject to oversight regarding its administration of the Affordable Care Act.

What changed

Last recorded activity January 1, 2017.

What's next

Next step not available in the current record.

Summary

This document is a transcript from a January 31, 2017, House hearing focused on investigating allegations of fraud, waste, and abuse within the Affordable Care Act (ACA). The hearing featured testimony from officials at the Department of Health and Human Services, the Government Accountability Office, and a private citizen.

Key Facts

  • The hearing was held on January 31, 2017, by the Subcommittee on Health Care, Benefits and Administrative Rules.
  • The subcommittee chair noted a 25-percent average increase in health insurance premiums for the year 2017.
  • The hearing included testimony from three witnesses: Vicki Robinson (HHS), John Dicken (GAO), and Jonathan W. Siegel (private citizen).
  • The committee granted unanimous consent for all members of the full Committee on Oversight and Government Reform to participate in the subcommittee hearing.
  • The hearing focused on the stated goal of investigating fraud, waste, and abuse under the Affordable Care Act.

Frequently Asked Questions

What was the purpose of this hearing?
The hearing was convened to examine issues of fraud, waste, and abuse related to the implementation and administration of the Affordable Care Act.
Who testified at the hearing?
Testimony was provided by Vicki Robinson from the HHS Office of Inspector General, John Dicken from the Government Accountability Office, and private citizen Jonathan W. Siegel.

Why It Matters

The hearing serves as a formal legislative inquiry into the financial integrity and performance of the Affordable Care Act, which directly impacts the insurance premiums and coverage costs for millions of Americans.

News Coverage

No news coverage found yet. Articles are indexed twice daily.

Lobbying Activity

AARP

$4,110,000

2026

HEALTH ISSUESMEDICARE/MEDICAIDLAW ENFORCEMENT/CRIME/CRIMINAL JUSTICEPHARMACY

P.L. 119-21, One Big Beautiful Bill Act H.R. 8867, Planning for Long-term Aging Needs (PLAN) Act H.R. 5861, Legacy Act of 2025 H.R. 9393, the Lower Costs, More Transparency Act. H.R. 9396, the Prior Authorization Accountability Act. S. 4916, the Aging with Artificial Intelligence Act. H.R. 8100, Safe Staffing Saves Lives Act. S. 3886, Nurses Belong in Nursing Homes Act. H.R. 6766/S. 3492, the Essential Caregivers Act of 2025. H.R. 7966/S. 4118, Hospice Care Accountability, Reform, and Enforcement (Hospice CARE) Act. S. 2120, the Older Americans Act Reauthorization Act of 2025 H.R. 5575, the Firefighters Assisting Seniors to Emergency Response (FASTER) Act of 2025. H.R. 3954/S. 4641, Improving Access to Medicare Coverage Act. H.R.5554/S.2831, Stand Strong for Medicare Act. S. 3439/H.R. 6735, Connecting Caregivers to Medicare Act and efforts related to the bill S. 1227/H.R. 2491, Alleviating Barriers for Caregivers Act S. 668/H.R. 3183, Supporting Access to Falls Education and Prevention and Strengthening Training Efforts and Promoting Safety Initiatives (SAFE STEPS) for Veterans Act of 2025 CMS-1851-P, Hospice Proposed rule. CMS-1843-P, Skilled Nursing Facility Proposed rule. CMS-1844-P, Home Health Proposed rule. No bill number. Health care transparency. No bill number. Discussed use of artificial intelligence and health data technology. No bill number. Discussed health-related policies and activities around the fall respiratory virus season. No bill number. Discussed health insurance affordability proposals. No bill number. Discussed Nursing Home staffing standards, safety, and quality. No bill number. Discussed Nursing home transparency and ownership requirements. No bill number. Discussed home health, hospice, and long-term care. No bill number. Discussed falls prevention. No bill number. Discussed social isolation. No bill number. Discussed HUD Assisted Living Requirements No bill number. Discussed family caregiving. No bill number. Discussed AARP paper on Medicare Caregiver Training Services. No bill number. Discussed Medicaid community engagement interim final rule, including the family caregiver exemption. No bill number. Discussed the paid direct care workforce in long-term care. No bill number. Discussed the unaffordability of long-term care. No bill number. Discussed Money Follows the Person Rebalancing Demonstration Program and Medicaid HCBS spousal impoverishment protections. No bill number. Discussed Medicaid fraud and family caregivers, Medicaid self-direction programs. No bill number. Discussed sandwich generation family caregiver hearing and submitted a statement for the record discussing family caregivers and sandwich generation caregivers, programs that support them, AARP caregiving resources, and federal policies to support sandwich generation caregivers and caregivers more broadly. No bill number. Discussed long-term care. No bill number. CMS-2453-NC; Medicaid Program; 2028 Medicaid Home and Community-Based Services Quality Measure Set Submitted comments No bill number. Discussed expanding access to home care. No bill number. Discussed the increasing cost of home care No bill number. Discussed HSA use for telehealth chronic care management services/subscriptions. No bill number. Discussed artificial intelligence and technology

Sponsors

Discoveries

Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.

policy shift90% confidence

Early 2017 Oversight Focus

The hearing reflects the immediate shift in congressional oversight priorities toward the Affordable Care Act at the start of the 115th Congress.

Connected Entities

organizationHouse Committee on Oversight and Government ReformParent committee of the subcommitteeMap →
personJim JordanChairman of the Subcommittee on Health Care, Benefits and Administrative RulesMap →
personRaja KrishnamoorthiRanking Member of the SubcommitteeMap →
personVicki RobinsonSenior Counselor for Policy, Office of Inspector General, HHSMap →
personJonathan W. SiegelCitizen witness from Rochester, New YorkMap →
personJohn DickenDirector, Health Care, U.S. Government Accountability OfficeMap →

Sources

Open source document

www.govinfo.gov

Analysis Score

0–100
  • Significance65
    How much this matters to a regular citizen
  • Controversy75
    Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
  • Entertainment20
    Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
  • Buzz15
    Current news / social attention level

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