Full Breakdown
Trump Administration Imposes Six-Month Medicare Moratorium on New Hospice and Home-Health Providers
5/13/2026, 10:41:58 PM
Six-Month Medicare Enrollment Moratorium for Hospice and Home-Health Providers
On May 13 2026, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), acting under the Trump administration and Vice President JD Vance’s anti-fraud task force, announced a nationwide six-month pause on new Medicare enrollments for hospice and home-health agencies. The moratorium bars any provider that is not already enrolled from applying for Medicare reimbursement, while existing providers may continue to serve beneficiaries. CMS said the action is intended to give the agency time to audit expenditures and develop additional guidance to curb fraudulent billing.
Background and Context
Fraudulent billing in hospice and home-health services has been a persistent concern for federal officials. CMS previously suspended payments to 773 hospices and 23 home-health agencies in Los Angeles, recovering roughly $70 million. The agency also halted new enrollments in specific counties, such as Miami-Dade in 2013, when fraud suspicions arose. In February 2026, CMS paused Medicare enrollment for durable-medical-equipment suppliers. The current moratorium follows the creation of a bipartisan anti-fraud task force in March 2026, led by Vice President Vance and involving about ten federal agencies, including the Department of Justice.
Key Figures and Groups
- Mehmet Oz, CMS Administrator, the public face of the moratorium.
- JD Vance, U.S. Vice President and head of the anti-fraud task force.
- National Partnership for Healthcare and Hospice Innovation, which publicly supported the pause.
- National Alliance for Care at Home, which warned the action could deter legitimate care.
- Major industry players: BrightSpring Health Services, Matrix Medical Network, UnitedHealth Group, and VITAS Healthcare (a Chemed Corporation subsidiary).
- Tricia Neumann, senior vice president at the Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF), provides policy analysis on moratoria.
Data and Statistics
- In 2024, 1.8 million Medicare beneficiaries received hospice care, costing $28.3 billion (MedPAC).
- The same year, 2.7 million beneficiaries received home-health services, costing $16 billion (MedPAC).
- Between 2019 and 2023, the number of hospice providers grew at an average of 7.8 % per year.
- The National Health Care Anti-Fraud Association estimates tens of billions of dollars are lost annually to health-care fraud.
- CMS has already suspended $70 million in payments to suspected fraudulent providers in Los Angeles.
Why It Matters
Proponents argue the pause will protect vulnerable Medicare patients, preserve taxpayer dollars, and allow CMS to refine fraud-detection tools. Critics caution that the blanket restriction could limit access to needed hospice and home-health services, especially in regions where provider shortages already exist, and may penalize compliant agencies that lack the resources to navigate a prolonged enrollment delay.
Official Statements and Responses
CMS Administrator Oz framed the moratorium as a safeguard for patients and taxpayers. The anti-fraud task force described the measure as a necessary step to stop “massive-scale fraud.” The National Partnership for Healthcare and Hospice Innovation welcomed the temporary pause, while the National Alliance for Care at Home urged a more targeted approach. KFF’s Neumann noted that brief moratoria have historical precedent and can be effective when paired with robust oversight. CMS later acknowledged an error in the data used to justify a New York fraud probe, highlighting challenges in rapidly assessing fraud risk.
Criticism and Opposition
Industry groups and advocacy organizations warned that the moratorium could deter physicians from referring patients to hospice or home-health services and could discourage new entrants seeking to address care gaps. The admission of a data error in the New York investigation raised questions about the accuracy of the administration’s fraud assessments. Some observers have characterized the policy as politically motivated, noting the administration’s focus on Democratic-led states.
Conflicting Reports and Gaps
CMS’s acknowledgment of a miscalculated figure for the New York probe contrasts with earlier statements that presented the data as definitive. No public data have yet quantified how many new providers were slated to enroll during the six-month window, leaving the true scale of the moratorium’s impact uncertain.
Verbatim Quotes
- “This is about protecting patients, restoring integrity, and safeguarding taxpayer dollars.” — Mehmet Oz, CMS Administrator (Reuters, May 13 2026)
- “Widespread fraud has gone on for far too long. But under the Vice President's task force we are finally putting a stop to the massive scale fraudsters ripping off the American people once and for all,” — Spokesperson for Vice President JD Vance (USA Today, May 13 2026)
- “A brief moratorium gives the administration time to crack down on true fraud and prevent new fraudulent entities from popping up,” — Tricia Neumann, senior vice president, Kaiser Family Foundation (AP, May 13 2026)
- “The National Alliance for Care at Home warned against overly broad action that could deter doctors and patients from recommending or seeking care.” — National Alliance for Care at Home (Reuters, May 13 2026)
- “In April, CMS acknowledged toThe Associated Press that it made a significant errorin figures it used to help justify a fraud probe in New York.” — CMS (AP, May 13 2026)
What’s Next
CMS plans to use advanced data analytics during the moratorium to identify suspicious billing patterns and to issue additional guidance on enrollment criteria. The agency has signaled that the pause could be extended if fraud persists, and it will coordinate with state investigations already underway in Minnesota, California, Georgia, and Ohio. Parallel actions against durable-medical-equipment suppliers suggest a broader federal effort to tighten oversight across multiple Medicare-covered sectors.
