RFK Jr., Oz blame ACA enrollment drop on fraud, but experts cite rising costs

Core Impact Points

• The ACA enrollment has dropped by nearly 3 million this year, with experts citing rising costs as the primary reason.
• The Trump administration claims that 5.6 million people were fraudulently enrolled in ACA plans in 2025, but experts dispute this figure, saying it's an overstatement.
• The administration's anti-fraud efforts, such as tightening the enrollment process and removing 1.5 million people for not meeting tax requirements, have been criticized for being ineffective and overly broad.
• Policy experts argue that the absence of a Social Security number doesn't automatically prove fraud, and that the administration's assumptions about suspicious enrollments are debatable.
• The administration's focus on fraud has been seen as a distraction from the real issue of rising healthcare costs, which are a major concern for voters ahead of the midterm elections.
• The ACA's year-round enrollment program for low-income people was halted by the administration in August 2025, which experts say has contributed to the decline in enrollment.