Crushing Waste, Fraud, and Abuse with Dr. Oz
ALEC had the great honor of hosting Dr. Mehmet Oz, Administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, at our Annual Meeting in Orlando! Dr. Oz met with multiple state delegations to discuss the pressing issues with Medicaid and health care in their states and delivered a keynote address to all the attendees.
In his address, Dr. Oz highlighted four main pillars for state legislators to focus on: Crushing waste, fraud, and abuse; transforming health care in rural communities; preserving Medicaid; and addressing technology and artificial intelligence in health care.
He opened his remarks by quoting Hubert Humphrey, the Vice President to Lyndon B. Johnson.
“It was once said that the moral test of government is how that government treats those who are in the dawn of life, the children; those who are in the twilight of life, the elderly; and those who are in the shadows of life, the sick, the needy, and the handicapped.”
Dr. Oz believes that we, as a prosperous society and government, should be able to live up to this idea, and we try to. The United States spends 25% of its federal budget on health programs, double the amount spent on national defense, which is why rooting out waste, fraud, and abuse is so important. Dr. Oz said that “we do have to crush waste, fraud and abuse because it speaks to a deeper corruption within the system.”
How can a government claim to uphold its moral duty when it allows bad actors to steal money from the most vulnerable? Our support for the needy only works when we can uphold and protect high trust in our systems.
Dr. OZ sang the praises of our state legislators, who he says are vital in the efforts to root out waste, fraud, and abuse. He called the states “our biggest partners on Medicaid,” and said, “I want to thank you very much because you guys have been all over this issue. Without state legislators often being ahead of us, we wouldn’t have a light out there to follow.”
Later in his remarks, he highlighted the Rural Health Transformation Program and the importance of states using that money to improve health care access and quality in rural communities. Dr. Oz said, “Americana, our vision for what the foundations of our nation and its values are, is based in rural America. That’s the beginning of the culture. So, when we see those areas falling behind and we know we can fix it, it’s a moral obligation.”
Dr. Oz emphasized the importance of quality in health care and that improving quality and experience should be at the center of government efforts. The potential of technology to do this gives him great hope, but he recognizes the concern and uncertainty, especially regarding artificial intelligence. It’s important to find ways to let technology develop safely so that when patients decide that they want it to improve their experience, it will be ready for them.
“A lot of people are scared of technology,” said Dr. Oz, “They don’t trust it, and I understand and completely share why those concerns exist. We have to get smarter on this. We have to figure out the ways we can talk about these issues so that we can actually get people to feel confident that they will get a better quality experience dealing with the health care system if we allow technology to facilitate the process.”
Dr. Oz closed his remarks with more appreciation for the ALEC Annual Meeting audience and their efforts as ALEC members. He thanked the ALEC Government Efficiency Coalition, which he said is “getting amazing results by prioritizing the reduction of just the wasteful processes. We are partners of yours, so come to us as well.” He also thanked the ALEC Board of Directors for all their work and gave shoutouts to Speaker Matt Hall of Michigan and Wisconsin Senate President Mary Felzkowski.
ALEC is very grateful to Dr. Oz for spending time with our members and us at the Annual Meeting. You can see more of the highlights in the video below.