STATE CAPITOL, PHOENIX –  Arizona House Majority Leader Michael Carbone today denounced Governor Katie Hobbs for vetoing HB2449, legislation he sponsored to crack down on waste, fraud, and abuse in Arizona’s Medicaid program.

“Governor Hobbs just vetoed my bill that would have rooted out fraud and abuse in Arizona’s Medicaid program and protect public healthcare resources for those who truly need them.

“By its own estimate, the poorly named Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System has wasted over $3 billion in improper Medicaid payments since 2018, most of which is from failing to properly verify the eligibility of enrollees.

“HB2449 would have closed loopholes that allow key eligibility factors to go unchecked during the Medicaid enrollment process and would have required more frequent eligibility checks.

“Governor Hobbs claims that implementing these safeguards would cost the state resources—but that simply isn’t true. Other states—including Arkansas, Indiana, North Carolina, and Texas—have adopted the very same cross-checking tools required in my bill without incurring additional costs.

“We should use every tool at our disposal to protect taxpayer dollars and limited public resources for the truly needy. But apparently Governor Hobbs believes that protecting bureaucrats from additional work is more important.

“Unfortunately, this is not the first time that Governor Hobbs has been reckless with Arizona’s Medicaid program. In 2023, it was the Republican legislature that forced the Hobbs administration to expedite the removal of hundreds of thousands of ineligible people from the Medicaid rolls, which saved Arizona taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars. My legislation would have led to even more savings.

“Arizona voters sent a loud message in 2024 that they are tired of business as usual. Governor Hobbs talks a big game about cleaning up wasteful government spending, but her actions show that it is all talk.”

Michael Carbone is a Republican member of the Arizona House of Representatives serving Legislative District 25 which includes portions of Yuma, Maricopa, and La Paz Counties. He also serves as House Majority Leader. Follow him on X at @MichaelCarbone.