White House fraud task force outlines antifraud accomplishments. On May 26, 2026, the White House published an update on key actions undertaken by the White House Task Force to Eliminate Fraud. The update highlights the March and April 2026 suspensions of more than 400 high-risk hospice providers and multiple home health providers in the Los Angeles area, the deferment of $91 million in federal Medicaid funds for Minnesota, the deferment of $1.3 billion in federal Medicaid reimbursements for California, and the suspension of $1.4 billion in home health and hospice funding nationwide.
The update also outlines May 21, 2026, developments from the US Department of Justice (DOJ), including the expansion of its Health Care Fraud Strike Force program by adding 15 new trial attorney positions dedicated to combatting Medicaid fraud. The DOJ’s “Minnesota Health Care Fraud Takedown” resulted in criminal charges against 15 defendants, including child care center owners and Medicaid providers, for their alleged participation in fraud schemes involving more than $90 million in intended losses.
HHS releases Federal IDR Operations final rule. On May 28, 2026, the US Departments of Health and Human Services (HHS), Labor, and the Treasury, along with the Office of Personnel Management, issued the long-awaited Federal IDR Operations final rule. The proposed rule was published in the Federal Register on November 3, 2023. Much of the final rule responds to technical limitations that stakeholders have highlighted since the federal IDR process under the No Surprises Act began. These issues have led to challenges in correctly identifying which disputes are eligible for the federal IDR process and in batching similar claims. An HHS press release indicates that since launching in April 2022, the federal IDR process has handled more than five million disputes, significantly surpassing projections and contributing to delays and avoidable costs.
The final rule:
The modifications to the batching and IDR processes apply to disputes with open negotiation periods beginning 90 days or more after the final rule is published in the Federal Register. The changes to IDR fees apply to disputes initiated five business days or more after the rule has been published in the Federal Register. A press release on the rule is available here, and a fact sheet on the rule is available here.
The House and Senate will return from recess next week. The Senate is expected to resume consideration of the pending reconciliation 2.0 package focused on immigration and security funding after intra-party disagreements delayed action before the recess.
The Senate HELP Committee will hold a rescheduled hearing on gender-affirming care for minors, and the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, HHS, Education, and Related Agencies will hold a markup of its fiscal year 2027 bill. The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee will hold a hearing on fraud and Medicaid waiver programs.
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