The Trump administration has removed more than 760,000 people from Affordable Care Act coverage after federal officials determined that their enrollments were unauthorized, marking a major new step in the White House’s broader campaign against fraud in federal programs.

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The effort is being coordinated with Vice President JD Vance’s White House Task Force to Eliminate Fraud and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), led by Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz. CMS says the canceled enrollments are expected to result in the return of approximately $2.2 billion in taxpayer-funded subsidies.

From Mediaite:

The task force said eliminating the subsidies for the allegedly fraudulent enrollees would save an estimated $2.2 billion in taxpayer dollars.

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, headed by administrator Mehmet Oz, was also expected to cut off hundreds of brokers and agents who get paid each time they sign up a new enrollee for government health insurance, The Journal reported.

Officials said 40 insurance agents and brokers were responsible for creating 50,000 fake accounts at a cost of $45 million — and CMS had already axed 66 agnets from its system.

The crackdown goes beyond canceling the unauthorized policies. CMS announced Tuesday that since January it has sent termination notices to more than 200 agents and brokers it says failed to comply with Marketplace requirements. This summer, another 569 agents and brokers received notices of intent to terminate after submitting applications without key identifying information, such as Social Security numbers.

The agency is also tightening the rules governing future enrollments. Existing agents and brokers will have to reverify their identities, applications involving brokers will be required to contain verifiable Social Security or immigration-document numbers for most applicants, and consumers will have to provide electronic authorization before an agent can act on their behalf. CMS has also temporarily halted registration of new agents and brokers for the 2027 plan year if they do not already have an active 2026 Exchange agreement.

This is not the administration’s first move against improper ACA enrollment. In January, CMS reported that during the previous year it had ended premium subsidies for nearly 1.5 million people whom the agency determined were either ineligible for financial assistance or enrolled without authorization. CMS said it was reinstating verification and enforcement measures that had largely gone unenforced since 2021.

The latest action comes as enrollment in ACA Marketplace plans has grown substantially in recent years. The Wall Street Journal reports that enrollment increased from roughly 10 million to more than 22 million during the Biden administration. The administration argues that stronger verification is necessary to ensure taxpayer-funded subsidies go only to eligible recipients, while changes to ACA enrollment and subsidy rules have also generated broader disputes over access to health coverage.

For intercessors, stewardship and integrity in government are worthy subjects for prayer regardless of which federal program is involved. Billions of taxpayer dollars are entrusted to public officials, and programs intended to help Americans can be undermined when fraud or unauthorized enrollment goes unchecked. Let’s pray that wrongdoing throughout the federal government is exposed, that innocent Americans are protected from unauthorized changes to their health coverage, and that officials administer taxpayer-funded programs with honesty, wisdom, and accountability.

Share your prayers for integrity and accountability in our government in the comments.

(Excerpt from Mediaite. Photo Credit: The White House)