Dr. Oz Dodges on Cuts to Medicare, Medicaid

Dr. Mehmet Oz repeatedly avoided answering direct questions about whether he would oppose attempts to cut Medicare and Medicaid services if confirmed as the head of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

Oz appeared before the Senate Finance Committee on Friday for his confirmation hearing to serve as head of CMS, where Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., asked him, "Will you agree to oppose cuts in the Medicaid program?"

Oz responded, "I cherish Medicaid, and I've worked within the Medicaid environment quite extensively, as I highlighted, practicing at Columbia University."

When Wyden asked if he would "oppose cuts to this program you say you cherish," Oz again declined to directly answer.

"I want to make sure that patients today and in the future have resources to protect them if they get ill. The way you protect Medicaid is by making sure that it's viable at every level, which includes having enough practitioners to afford the services, paying them enough to do what you request of them and making sure that patients are able to use Medicaid," he said.

Oz was also asked if he would "cut Medicaid," by Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., and if he would oppose Medicaid cuts if they would impact rural hospitals by Sen. Ben Ray Lujan, D-N.M., but did not directly answer either time.

He added that he would support work requirements for Medicaid, claiming that the expansion to the program under the Affordable Care Act "made sense" for some states but "for some it didn't."

Oz said, "The rapid expansion of the required expenses of monies for Medicaid is far beyond what was ever envisioned when ACA was originally passed. It is one of the ways we can do better."

He also claimed that Medicare Advantage, which allows patients on Medicare to receive coverage through private health insurance providers, overpays those private providers. Oz previously supported Medicare Advantage and advocated for a Medicare Advantage for All plan in 2020.

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