What happened: Ron DeSantis said Florida is expanding its effort to identify fraud, waste and abuse in Medicaid , announcing that the state has terminated more than 220 providers and cut projected spending on a key autism-related therapy program by nearly $1 billion.
Background: DeSantis and Agency for Health Care Administration Secretary Shevaun Harris made the announcement Tuesday at the Health Care District of Palm Beach County in West Palm Beach. Since January, DeSantis said AHCA has conducted more than 400 provider site visits as part of heightened oversight.
The agency has also made more than 150 fraud referrals to the Florida Attorney General’s Office and placed more than 250 providers on payment restrictions or suspended their payments. The more than 220 providers removed from Florida Medicaid accounted for over $230 million in billing in 2025, according to the administration.
“These actions are focused on bad actors who exploit the program, not legitimate providers delivering necessary care to Floridians,” DeSantis said. State officials said they are using provider screening, data analytics, claims monitoring, background checks and site visits to identify suspicious billing.
DeSantis said some providers billed Medicaid for services exceeding 24 hours in a day, while others submitted claims for services every day, including weekends and holidays, over extended periods. The administration has placed particular focus on applied behavior analysis, or ABA, a therapy commonly used by chldren with autism and other developmental needs.
Florida moved ABA services into managed care in 2025, a change the governor said was intended to provide more oversight.
The available details are limited to the information verified at publication time. Readers should expect updates as the matter develops.
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Source: official sources including CBS12 News.
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