ObamaCare Still Can't Catch Fraudulent Enrollees -- Audit
10/22/2015 05:29 PM ET
Government auditors were able sign up 17 out of 18 fake ObamaCare enrollees for coverage through federal and state exchanges, a report released on Thursday reveals. That's despite the fact that some applications included obvious signs of fraud.
The Government Accountability Office sent 10 auditors with fictitious enrollment information to the federal healthcare.gov site as well as two state-run ObamaCare exchanges, to sign up for subsidized insurance.
While eight didn't make it through the initial identity-checking process, all 10 eventually obtained coverage, even though four obviously had made up Social Security numbers that started with "000." They all were able to keep their coverage despite filing fake follow-up documentation.
In addition, the GAO tried to sign eight more up for Medicaid coverage. Three made it through the process, and four ended up getting subsidized private coverage instead. The only one that failed was in California, which refused to sign the person up without a Social Security number
This is the second time the GAO has been able to bypass ObamaCare's supposed verification procedures and obtain coverage using false information. Last year, it was able to sign up several for ObamaCare plans at Healthcare.gov, and get them renewed for 2015, even though they repeatedly failed to provide required information.
When confronted with the GAO's findings, the two state-run exchanges — in California and Kentucky — said they only inspect documents that obviously have been altered, and they aren't required to verify information about employer coverage. The federal marketplace told the GAO that its "eligibility and enrollment system is generally performing as designed."
Given the amount of taxpayer money at risk from ObamaCare fraud, these sorts of responses are hardly comforting.
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