Vance’s Anti-Fraud Team Shutters 70 ‘Hospice’ Providers In L.A.

Vice President J.D. Vance is spearheading a major expansion of the Trump administration’s crackdown on government fraud, following his appointment by President Donald J. Trump to lead a newly formed anti-fraud task force.

The initiative marks a significant shift in how federal agencies identify and combat abuse within taxpayer-funded programs, incorporating advanced artificial intelligence to detect suspicious activity in real time. According to reports, the system is designed to flag—or even block—potentially fraudulent claims before taxpayer dollars are lost.

Working in coordination with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), led by Mehmet Oz, the task force has already begun producing tangible results. In California, CMS recently identified and suspended 70 hospice and home health providers in the Los Angeles area after they were flagged as high-risk for fraud. Officials say funding to those providers was halted within just one week of detection—a dramatic acceleration compared to traditional enforcement timelines.

“As the task force to root out waste, fraud, and abuse ramps up its work, we expect [the number of potentially fraudulent hospice and home health providers] to grow exponentially,” one source told Fox News.

The administration has also taken decisive action in the Midwest. Earlier this year, Vance and Oz announced that $259.5 million in Medicaid funding would be withheld from Minnesota amid mounting concerns over fraudulent activity. The move came as scrutiny intensified in the state, shortly before Democratic Gov. Tim Walz revealed he would not seek a third term.

President Trump has made clear that no region will be off-limits, but noted a troubling pattern in where fraud appears most prevalent. “It seems that it’s usually in blue states,” Trump said. “If it’s in a red state, we’re going there too, but it seems that it’s heavily, heavily Democrat.”

The task force is now working to scale its AI-driven model nationwide, building on systems already piloted within CMS. Historically, agencies like the Department of Health and Human Services relied heavily on manual investigations—often allowing fraudulent schemes to persist for months or even years before being shut down. Officials say the new approach will dramatically shorten that window, protecting billions in taxpayer funds.

“Vice President Vance looks forward to carrying out the President’s War on Fraud,” a spokesperson told Fox News Digital.

“The American people deserve better than being ripped off by people who hate this country, and the Task Force to Eliminate Fraud will ensure that essential taxpayer-funded services are used to support the hard-working Americans who rely on them, instead of being used by fraudsters and criminals,” the spokesperson added.

The urgency behind the initiative is underscored by recent high-profile cases. In Minnesota, a 2022 investigation launched under the previous administration uncovered what prosecutors described as one of the largest pandemic-era fraud schemes in U.S. history, centered around the nonprofit Feeding Our Future. Federal investigators ultimately identified roughly $250 million in fraudulent claims tied to the operation, with dozens charged and more cases continuing to emerge.

Speaking earlier this month in Rocky Mount, Vance revealed the scale of the broader problem, stating that at least $19 billion in suspected fraud has already been identified in the Twin Cities region alone. He also indicated that states like California could face increased scrutiny as the administration expands its efforts.

“We know there’s a lot of fraud in California, and we’re trying to get to the bottom of exactly what it looks like and what we’ve done in the Trump administration,” Vance said in response to a question by Fox News. “And the president has really empowered us to do this… is to take the first national look at the way the American people have been defrauded over many, many years,” Vance added.

As the task force ramps up hiring and prepares to deploy its technology nationwide, the Trump administration is signaling a clear priority: restoring accountability in federal programs and ensuring taxpayer dollars are no longer siphoned off by fraud, waste, and abuse.