U.S. Rep. Vern Buchanan (R-Brandon) has responded to a recent Congressional Budget Office (CBO) analysis, stating that it confirms ongoing concerns about waste, fraud, and abuse in federal health programs. Buchanan said the report supports Republican claims that Democratic policies allowed improper spending and provided taxpayer-funded health care to individuals not eligible for such benefits.
“The latest CBO analysis confirms what Republicans have been saying all along: Democrats opened the floodgates for waste, fraud and abuse in our federal health programs, even allowing illegal immigrants to receive taxpayer-funded health care. Republicans’ working families tax cut put a stop to these reckless policies and restores accountability to a broken system.
“Our reforms will save taxpayers $185 billion, lower premiums for traditional populations who are properly enrolled in federal programs and ensure these vital programs serve the Americans who truly need them. As Chair of the Health Subcommittee, I’m proud to stand with President Trump in protecting the integrity of our health care system.”
The chairmen of three House committees—Ways and Means, Budget, and Energy and Commerce—requested that CBO provide additional context regarding coverage estimates linked to reforms under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. According to Buchanan’s office, CBO’s analysis shows that the legislation does not remove coverage from eligible Americans but ends subsidies for those not qualified, including illegal immigrants. The CBO estimates that changes related to premium tax credit eligibility would reduce improper recipients by 2.1 million people by 2034.
CBO’s findings indicate that in 2025 approximately 2.3 million Obamacare enrollees improperly claimed premium tax credits by misreporting income or other means of qualifying for subsidies they were not entitled to receive. The analysis also attributes this trend partly to expanded credits introduced during the Biden-Harris administration.
The report projects $185 billion in taxpayer savings as a result of Republican-backed reforms included in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. These measures aim to address fraud associated with Obamacare subsidies while maintaining support for those who meet eligibility requirements.
Additionally, CBO expects premiums will decrease by 0.6 percent following implementation of these reforms. New program integrity rules introduced by the Trump Administration are projected by CBO to prevent up to 500,000 fraudulent subsidy enrollments within a single year.
Vern Buchanan is currently serving as U.S. Representative for Florida’s 16th district since 2007 after succeeding Katherine Harris (https://buchanan.house.gov/about). He previously served in the Florida House of Representatives (https://bioguide.congress.gov/search/bio/B001260). Born in Detroit in 1951, Buchanan lives in Sarasota (https://floridapolitics.com/archives/650151-vern-buchanan-profile/) and holds degrees from Cleary University and University of Detroit Mercy.
