Rep. Fitzgerald Chairs Judiciary Subcommittee Field Hearing on Obamacare Waste, Fraud, & Abuse

CHARLOTTE, NC - Today, Congressman Scott Fitzgerald (WI-05), who serves as Chairman of the House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Administrative State, Regulatory Reform, and Antitrust, held a field hearing in North Carolina titled, "Examining Healthcare Markets: Fraud and Competition." Rep. Fitzgerald issued the following statement about the hearing:

"I think we can all agree that there is something wrong with the American healthcare system. The price of care is sky high, in part because of the design of, and rampant fraud occurring in, the Obamacare insurance system.

"Obamacare promised affordable healthcare for Americans. But it has not lived up to that promise. The price of Obamacare plans has increased at twice the rate of employer-sponsored plans. Instead of doing something about the artificially inflated prices, the Biden Administration just handed out more subsidies.

"To add insult to injury, because the Obamacare system does not trust Americans to make decisions about their own healthcare coverage, those subsidies go straight into the pockets of insurance companies instead of the American people.

"In the Working Families Tax Cuts bill, Republicans prevented illegal aliens from receiving premium tax credits. We also removed the cap on repayments to the federal government for excessive subsidies and added stricter eligibility verification to ensure people do not receive generous subsidies before their eligibility is determined.

"I also supported the Lower Health Care Premiums for All Americans Act that passed the House late last year. House Republicans recognize that we cannot keep writing blank checks for heavily subsidized programs that continue to drive up costs.

"While we have taken huge steps in the right direction, Congress must build on that progress to protect taxpayers, crack down on fraud, and ensure these subsidies go to people who are actually eligible.

"That's exactly why we gathered in North Carolina for this field hearing, to gather additional solutions. North Carolina has redefined its healthcare industry through investments in cutting-edge tech and research hubs, as well as a statewide rural health transformation program. As a result, the state has received national rankings in healthcare innovation and quality."

Watch Congressman Fitzgerald's opening statement from the hearing:

Background: This hearing examined how mergers, certificate of need laws, regulations, vertical integration, and insurance fraud are affecting healthcare access and affordability across the United States. The hearing also reviewed how Obamacare subsidies inflate healthcare costs and create an environment ripe for waste, fraud, and abuse.

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