The federal watchdog for the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) generated $5.56 billion in expected recoveries and projected savings over a six-month period, according to a report issued Monday, and it barred just more than 1,200 individuals and companies from federal programs.
The HHS Office of Inspector General (OIG), in a semiannual report to Congress, said it returned $12.70 for every dollar it spent between October 2025 through March 2026.
The Trump administration often cites rampant waste, fraud and abuse as justification for deep program cuts.
Vice President Vance, HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Medicare chief Mehmet Oz have launched what the administration describes as an unprecedented crackdown on healthcare fraud, though much of their effort has focused on Democratic-run states.
According to the OIG report, much of the monetary impact came from a handful of cases.
In one instance, the CEO of a healthcare software company was sentenced to 15 years in prison and ordered to pay $452 million in restitution after being convicted of conspiracy for a telemedicine and durable medical equipment fraud scheme worth more than $1 billion.
The report also cited hundreds of millions of dollars in restitution from the owners of wound graft companies, as well as $674 million in settlements with Kaiser Permanente affiliates and Aetna over inflated Medicare Advantage billing.
OIG said it excluded 1,212 individuals or entities from the Medicare program as a result of its investigations. That continues a downward trend of exclusions from about 1,500 during the same period in 2025, and nearly 1,800 in spring 2024. Criminal referrals also dropped to 1,168 from 1,451 during the Biden administration.
The “total monetary impact” measure is a relatively new term introduced in early 2025 at the beginning of the Trump administration. There has been wide variation, from $16.61 billion to $2.43 billion to the current $5.56 billion.
The term includes projected savings alongside money actually repaid. Before 2025, OIG only reported expected recoveries and receivables.
The addition of potential cost savings illustrates the funds that HHS could use more efficiently if it took action to implement OIG’s recommendations.
But OIG stressed in a statement to The Hill that much of the final figure for each semiannual reporting period depends on when certain civil settlements or criminal judgements are finalized, so the overall monetary impact as a whole is a more important figure, rather than numbers divided by reporting periods.