On October 19, Governor Bruce Rauner announced the recommendations from the Health Care Fraud Elimination Task Force. The task force, created in April, was tasked with looking strategically and comprehensively into fraud, waste and abuse in taxpayer-funded programs.
The report found that through the improved fraud, waste and abuse identification as well as prevention efforts recommended by the task force, the state will save an additional $50 million.
The task force has already taken simple and effective steps to improve how the state delivers heath care, while also driving better value for taxpayers. Central Management Services conducted an audit of all dependents from the State Employee Group Insurance Program and found the state was paying benefits for about 6,000 people that did not qualify for those benefits. Removing those individuals from their plans saved the state approximately $22 million in FY16 and is estimated to save over $32 million in FY 17.