(Official White House Photo by Adam Schultz)
In yet another blatant attempt to secure votes ahead of the 2024 election, the Biden-Harris regime has found itself embroiled in a massive $5 billion Medicare scandal.
The administration’s $5 billion Medicare stabilization program, announced by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) in July 2024, is part of a three-year demonstration project intended to keep premiums lower for seniors.
Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) has sent an urgent letter to the Department of Justice (DOJ), calling for an investigation into whether the move violates the Hatch Act, which forbids the use of taxpayer funds to influence elections.
“We write to you today seeking additional information on the Biden-Harris Administration’s plan to spend over $5 billion in taxpayer-funded subsidies to insurers to offset Medicare premium increases before the November election,” Sen. Paul wrote to Corey Amundson, the Chief of the Public Integrity Section at the DOJ.
“My colleagues and I are concerned that the Biden-Harris Administration is inappropriately using taxpayer funds to mask the defective Medicare Part D policies enacted as part of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) of 2022. Given the IRA’s central role in the Biden-Harris Administration’s presidential campaign, these concerns warrant additional investigation.”
It’s no secret that Medicare premiums have skyrocketed, thanks in large part to the IRA’s rushed and poorly designed reforms. In fact, Medicare premiums surged by a staggering 21% in 2023 alone, leaving seniors struggling to afford their prescriptions.
Now, with premiums expected to rise even higher in 2024, the Biden administration’s convenient “solution” has arrived just in time for election season—a move that Paul says smacks of political interference.
The Kentucky senator’s letter goes on to highlight the dubious legality of the administration’s actions.
Under Section 402 of the Social Security Amendments of 1967, CMS is granted authority to modify payment methods to improve the efficiency of Medicare.
However, as Paul points out, the Biden administration’s $5 billion bailout of Medicare insurers lacks any credible research or analysis to justify its so-called “efficiency.”
Instead, it seems aimed solely at lowering premiums in the short term to save face and secure votes.
Even more troubling is the potential violation of federal law. According to Paul, the administration’s actions may run afoul of the Hatch Act, which prohibits public officials from using taxpayer dollars to influence elections.
Citing 18 U.S.C. § 595, Paul argues that the Biden-Harris administration’s actions represent a clear and egregious attempt to interfere with the election by artificially propping up their Medicare policies.
“It is hard to imagine a more decisive action the Biden-Harris Administration could take to influence the election than spending billions of taxpayer dollars to cover up the negative impacts of their own highly touted IRA,” Sen. Paul wrote in the letter.
The timing is certainly suspicious. For over a year, the Biden administration turned a blind eye to rising Medicare premiums, ignoring the pleas of seniors and healthcare advocates alike. But now, with election day fast approaching, they’ve miraculously found a way to freeze premiums—at the expense of hardworking taxpayers, of course.
Sen. Paul has requested that the DOJ launch an immediate investigation into the administration’s actions and report their findings by October 16, 2024.
“With these considerations in mind, I request an expeditious investigation by your agency into any communications, including but not limited to interviews, internal phone calls, notes, emails, and all CMS records regarding the section 402 demonstration, and provide a determination to the Senate Committee on Homeland Security & Governmental Affairs (HSGAC) if Biden-Harris officials may have acted in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 595 by October 16, 2024.”
Kamala Harris cast the tie-breaking vote to pass the Inflation Reduction Act, which is now driving up seniors’ health care premiums. Americans deserve to know if Biden and Harris are now illegally handing taxpayer funds to insurance companies in order to hide those premium… pic.twitter.com/we3hddC58x
— Senator Rand Paul (@SenRandPaul) September 27, 2024
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