Most people want Medicaid dollars helping the sick, disabled, elderly, and truly vulnerable.
That is what the program is supposed to do. Help people who need care. Keep fragile people from falling through the floor. Provide medical support when families cannot carry the whole load alone.
What people do not want is a safety-net program turned into a buffet line for operators clever enough to convert human misery into billable paperwork.
The Denver Gazette reports that Colorado’s Medicaid agency has suspended payments to On Going Home Health Care, an Aurora home-health agency tied to what was called “The Program.” State officials cited “credible allegations of fraud” and stopped paying Medicaid claims while the investigation continues.
That word matters: allegations.
This is not a courtroom verdict. The facts still need to be tested. The agency and any individuals involved deserve the process the law provides.
But if the allegations hold, this is not just fraud.
It is betrayal.
According to The Gazette, the operation allegedly lured homeless people with promises of housing and payments, directed them through prescriptions and services, and then billed Medicaid for administering those drugs. The Gazette reported that On Going Home Health Care received more than $24 million in Medicaid payments, though it is unclear how much was tied to “The Program.” The state’s suspension letter alleged billing for services not rendered and pointed to Medicaid reimbursements rising from just over $1 million in 2022 to more than $20 million in 2025.
That is not a rounding error.
That is a flashing red light with sirens and a guy waving orange flags.
Here is the kitchen-table translation: taxpayers were sending money to help vulnerable people, and the state now says it has credible reason to believe someone may have been gaming the system.
The cruelest part is who gets hurt.
Medicaid fraud does not only rob taxpayers. It hurts the very people Medicaid is supposed to help. Every dollar stolen, wasted, or wrongly billed is a dollar not going to legitimate care. Every scandal makes the public more skeptical. Every bad actor makes life harder for honest providers doing difficult work the right way.
And if homeless people were used as bait, that is not entrepreneurship.
That is predation with paperwork.
Compassion without accountability becomes a hunting license for fraudsters. That is the hard truth government programs hate to admit. The softer the oversight, the more attractive the target. The more emotional the program language, the easier it is for bad actors to hide behind words like “care,” “housing,” “support,” and “community.”
Meanwhile, regular taxpayers are told every program simply needs more money.
Maybe some do.
But the first question should always be: who is watching the money we already send?
Colorado needs faster, tougher oversight before the money is gone and the damage is done. Not performative outrage after a newspaper investigation. Not bureaucratic fog after the checks clear. Real oversight. Early warning systems. Audits with teeth. Clear accountability. A culture that understands good intentions are not internal controls.
Protect the vulnerable. Protect the taxpayer. Protect honest providers.
And stop pretending compassion is measured by how much money government spends without asking enough questions.
Good intentions are not a substitute for locked doors and working lights.
Source: The Gazette
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