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GAO Details Verification Failures on ACA Marketplace as Republicans Push for Changes

Republican leaders are using the watchdog’s findings to press for tighter oversight of subsidies.

Overview

  • A GAO undercover test found 23 of 24 fake applications were approved on the federal exchange, with 18 still active after 11 months.
  • The watchdog reported $21 billion in 2023 subsidies lacked income verification and said 32% of Advance Premium Tax Credit recipients were high fraud risk for not filing required tax returns.
  • Exchange data showed widespread Social Security number duplication, including 29,000 duplicates in 2023 and 68,000 in 2024.
  • $94 million in subsidies went to accounts tied to death-record matches, according to GAO’s review of Social Security data.
  • Speaker Mike Johnson and Rep. Blake Moore are citing the report to push for reforms, pointing to expanded eligibility and federal subsidy spending that reached roughly $124 billion in 2024.