Newsom Files Civil Rights Complaint against CMS over Racially Charged Allegations
TL/DR –
California Governor Gavin Newsom’s office has filed a civil rights complaint against Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) administrator, Mehmet Oz, for his video alleging the Armenian community in Los Angeles of large-scale healthcare fraud. The video, which suggests potential fraud at multiple hospice facilities in the Van Nuys neighborhood, has been accused by Newsom of spreading “baseless and racially charged allegations” and causing “real-world harm”. The complaint is the latest event in the ongoing feud between Newsom and the Trump administration.
A New Dispute between California Governor Gavin Newsom and the Trump Administration Over Healthcare Fraud
A recent conflict arises between California governor, Gavin Newsom, and the Trump administration regarding allegations of healthcare fraud in the Armenian community by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) administrator, Mehmet Oz.
Newsom’s office announced a civil rights complaint against Oz for discrimination with the US Department of Health and Human Services on Thursday. The complaint alleges that Oz’s unfounded and racially charged allegations have caused economic harm to the Armenian community, particularly affecting a local bakery featured in the video.
Oz and the CMS have yet to respond to the complaint or confirm the fraud allegations. The video released on social media earlier this week shows Oz in Los Angeles’s Van Nuys neighborhood, suggesting potential fraud in a small area home to 42 hospices.
Notably, Oz accused the “Russian Armenian mafia” of running a considerable portion of the $3.5 billion fraud in hospice and home care within Los Angeles. He highlighted the Armenian script on local businesses while the camera focused on an Armenian bakery.
Newsom denounced the claims in Oz’s video. He stated that California had already revoked over 280 hospice licenses over fraud concerns and banned new licenses effective from 2022. A heated exchange between the two leaders ensued on social media.
Newsom and Trump: A History of Disputes
This conflict is the latest in a series between Newsom, seen as a potential 2028 Democratic Presidential candidate, and the Trump Administration. The two have previously clashed over various issues, such as the deployment of the national guard in Los Angeles and California’s pioneering ban on new gas-powered cars by 2035.
Oz’s video aligns with the Trump administration’s larger effort to expose fraud across the nation. This comes in the wake of allegations of fraud involving Somali American-run daycare centers in Minneapolis, triggering a massive immigration crackdown and consequent protests. Federal agents this month have fatally shot two people in the city.
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