CNBC host Joe Kernen lambasted Democratic California Rep. Ro Khanna on Thursday after the lawmaker described Medicare and Social Security as “efficient.” His comment came after President Donald Trump had appointed Leland Dudek—head of the Social Security Administration’s anti-fraud office—as acting head of the agency on February 18 following Michelle King’s resignation after a dispute with Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) employees.
Kernen noted that he had pointed out on X that reducing “fraud, waste and abuse” is a bipartisan priority, which prompted Khanna to come to the programs’ defense. “Oh, there’s certain things that are not inefficient. Medicare, Social Security,” Khanna said, prompting an incredulous Kernen to ask, “What?”
“Medicare is not ine—come on. Are you out of your mind? Medicare?” Kernan continued, per the Daily Caller. “And I’m not saying it’s Medicare’s fault, necessarily. There are in — look around and look at the way Medicare is gamed out by the people that benefit from it or Medicaid. I think Medicare Advantage might be one of the things that we’re talking about. Right, Ro?”
Over the years, there have been several notable cases of Medicare fraud. For instance, between 2007 and 2010, two Puerto Rico-based health plans defrauded the program of over $1 billion. Last year, a hospital operated by a company linked to James Biden, the brother of former President Joe Biden, was investigated for its involvement in a fraud and kickback scheme involving Medicare.
A July 2023 audit revealed that nearly 19 million individuals born before 1920 were still listed in the Social Security database without any recorded death information. Then, an August 2024 audit found that the SSA had made at least $72 billion in improper payments, while recommendations from the agency’s inspector general went unimplemented.
Efforts by the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) to eliminate waste and fraud and reduce the size and scope of the federal government have encountered legal challenges. A federal judge recently blocked the agency from reviewing Social Security data to uncover fraud, although other courts have permitted DOGE to continue its work.
