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Dr. Mehmet Oz, the newly sworn-in administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), reflected on his lifelong commitment to “change” during an appearance on “My View with Lara Trump,” saying he now brings that mission to “the best job of his life” in Washington, D.C.
Oz emphasized that Medicaid should not entrap Americans in dependency, but rather empower them to take control of their futures through work requirements and stronger anti-fraud enforcement.
“Our bottom line is the American people,” Oz said. “Every decision I have in this office changes how billions of dollars are spent in order to incentivize the right behavior and empower them to take action.”
A former television host turned politician, Oz views politics as a natural extension of his mission to enact meaningful change. Reflecting on his 2022 Senate loss in Pennsylvania to Sen. John Fetterman, he said that the campaign deepened his understanding of the intersection between policy and politics.
“For me, politics was an obvious next step, because if you really want to change the country for the better, you have to get involved with decisions that are being made. Instead of complaining about it, you might as well roll your sleeves up, get in the ring, and start fighting for what you think matters. And that’s what 2022 taught me,” he said.
Since his April 2025 confirmation as CMS administrator, Oz has placed Medicaid reform high on his agenda—including modernizing programs and cutting fraud, waste, and abuse. He argued that, during the COVID-19 pandemic, the program drifted away from its original mission outlined more than 60 years ago.
“Abuse happened… because there were these mechanisms to pay states extra money, so they weren’t responsible for their own actions. It was basically legalized money laundering,” he said. “It takes people out of the trap of being stuck in Medicaid, and it also allows them to move up the ladder, get jobs, make more money, get out of poverty, and begin to feel more pride in what they’re achieving in life.”
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