Medicare fraud has become a massive threat to both American taxpayers and senior citizens, according to Dr. Mehmet Oz, who sounded the alarm during a recent interview in Washington, D.C.

Speaking with Fox News Digital on July 6 at the Great American State Fair, Oz cautioned that scammers are stealing billions of dollars from the system every year and putting seniors’ personal information at risk.

"If I had to just pick one thing to focus on to make healthcare more affordable in America, I'd go to health fraud and all the waste and abuse that accompanies it," said Oz, who serves as the administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.

Oz said that the scope of the problem is vast, estimating that fraud and abuse account for around $100 billion each year.

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He emphasized that every dollar lost to fraud is a dollar taken from taxpayers and that the issue has grown worse since the COVID pandemic.

According to the U.S. Government Accountability Office, Medicare fraud schemes can involve billing for services that were never provided, overcharging for medical equipment, using stolen patient information, or conducting unnecessary medical procedures.

Oz noted that fighting this waste has been a growing national effort. Under the Trump administration, CMS reported $41.9 billion in Medicare program integrity savings in 2025, an increase of 59 percent from $26.3 billion in 2024.

But he warned that the consequences of fraud extend far beyond financial loss. When scammers misuse Medicare funds, seniors can face identity theft, unnecessary treatment, and higher insurance costs, while also seeing their access to care reduced.

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"So much of the fraud is perpetrated against them," Oz said, explaining that older Americans are often the main targets of these scams.

He compared the Medicare beneficiary number to a credit card number, adding that once criminals obtain it, they can use it for illegitimate billing and services.

"People are stealing from you by pretending to send you drugs you don't want, wheelchairs you don't need, [and] services you never asked for or don't benefit from," he said.

Oz urged seniors never to share their Medicare beneficiary numbers with strangers and to hang up immediately on unsolicited calls asking for personal information.

"These scammers are calling seniors, tricking them, and once they have key information, they can steal it," he said. "And I won't know it and you won't know it."

According to Oz, protecting the program and its beneficiaries requires vigilance. "We want to protect people who need these programs the most," he said. "You do that by making sure scoundrels don't corrupt the systems and steal money out of the till that is designed to help folks in dire straits when they're vulnerable and in need of services."

He also stated that removing fraud from the healthcare system could extend the life of Medicare’s trust fund.

"If you're worried about Medicare being there when you're ready to retire in a couple decades... you've got a good [reason to] worry," Oz said. "If we take the fraud out, we could double the life expectancy, which means you, your kids, your kids' kids... they could all benefit from this beautiful safety net program."