Assemblyman David G. McDonough (R,C,I-Merrick) and the Assembly Minority Task Force on Medicaid Fraud, Waste and Abuse held a roundtable discussion today in South Huntington.

“Some conservative estimates are that at least ten percent of what New York spends on Medicaid can be attributed to fraud, waste or abuse,” said McDonough. “The added cost of waste, fraud and abuse is passed on to property taxpayers across the state, increasing their property tax burden. These roundtable discussions are going to be used to find ways to help save taxpayers money.”

Local officials and healthcare professionals were invited to discuss ways to cut down on fraudulent claims and wasteful spending by both patients and providers. The panel also heard from representatives of IBM and Salient, two companies that are working with counties to develop computer programs designed to combat fraudulent claims.

Fraud, waste and abuse within the system account for nearly ten percent of Medicaid costs. The roundtable discussion on Long Island was the first in a series of hearings that will be held across the state.

Last year, New York spent almost $44.5 billion on the Medicaid program, nearly as much as California and Texas combined, and New York has less than half the enrollees of the two states combined. Medicaid fraud alone accounted for nearly $4.5 billion. The Assembly minority has consistently called for reform of the Medicaid system, including a state take-over of the program to relieve counties of the shared burden.

The next task force event is scheduled for mid-April in the Hudson Valley with additional events to be held in the North Country, Central New York and Western New York.