Camas resident Anna Miller says the Medicaid system is ‘being looted in plain sight’
Editor’s note: Opinions expressed in this letter to the editor are those of the author alone and may not reflect the editorial position of ClarkCountyToday.com
For too long, the Medicaid system in Washington, D.C. has operated as if accountability is optional. But when criminal enterprises siphon off billions in taxpayer dollars through fraud — money meant to serve the most vulnerable — it becomes clear that the system isn’t just broken. It’s being looted in plain sight.
Medicaid Director Melisa Byrd has held the reins since 2018. Under her tenure, D.C.’s Medicaid program has continued to hemorrhage funds while fraud detection lags and public trust erodes. This isn’t just a personnel issue — it’s a crisis of oversight. Byrd may not have masterminded these crimes, but nearly seven years in, she’s responsible for what she hasn’t prevented.
Where are the internal audits? They’ve begun — just not from within. The Department of Justice has stepped in where local oversight failed.
In June 2025, the DOJ launched the largest healthcare fraud crackdown in American history, charging 324 defendants, including 96 licensed medical professionals, across 50 federal districts. The schemes targeted both Medicare and Medicaid, with $14.6 billion in fraudulent claims uncovered and $2.9 billion in actual losses to taxpayers.
This wasn’t a case of a few bad actors. These were transnational criminal syndicates, operating from places like Russia, Eastern Europe, and Pakistan, using stolen identities and shell companies to siphon billions. The DOJ seized $245 million in cash, luxury cars, and cryptocurrency, while the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) blocked another $4 billion before it vanished.
The message is clear: while D.C.’s Medicaid leadership sleepwalks through fraud, the Justice Department is wide awake. Under the current administration, this operation sets a new bar for enforcement and integrity. Elon Musk, former head of DOGE, took to social media to praise the takedown, calling it “a righteous flex of federal muscle” and urging more leaders to “doge the grift and protect the people.”
For the full DOJ Announcement: Department of Justice | Homepage | United States Department of Justice.
Anna Miller
Camas
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