Attorney General Aaron Ford has spent months bragging about a record year fighting Medicaid fraud. His office claims it recovered more than $40.9 million in restitution and won 36 criminal convictions in 2025.
Now Ford has a problem. When a state lawmaker asked Nevada's own health agency to confirm those numbers, the agency couldn't do it. Not even close.
Ford's Big Claim
Ford's office put out a statement crediting itself with a banner year.
The claim reads:
“In Fiscal Year 2025, the Nevada Medicaid Fraud Control Unit secured a record 36 criminal convictions, marking the most successful year in the unit's history.
Under Attorney General Ford's tenure, the unit has also helped recover more than $40.9 million through criminal fraud restitution and worked with state leaders to strengthen anti-fraud safeguards through new laws aimed at improving provider verification and deterring fraudulent enrollment activity.”
That is a big number for an Attorney General running for Governor to put his name on. The problem is nobody at the Nevada Health Authority can find the money.
Lawmaker Asks A Simple Question, Gets No Real Answer
Assemblyman Blayne Osborn sent a letter to the Nevada Health Authority earlier this month asking basic oversight questions.
How much fraud money has actually made it back to the state? How does the process work? Where does Ford's office send the funds once they're collected?
The Health Authority responded on July 9, and the answer should worry every Nevada taxpayer. Nevada Medicaid says it has received only about $1.6 million total from Ford's office since 2020, covering every fiscal year combined, not just the one Ford is bragging about.
When directly asked to confirm Ford's $40.9 million figure, the agency stated it:
“cannot confirm whether the state has received recoveries related to these 36 cases or the referenced $40.9 million.“
The agency punted the entire question back to Ford's office.
In plain terms, Ford's own numbers cannot be verified by the state agency that is supposed to receive the money.
Ford's Office Also Turns Away Most Fraud Cases
There's more. The Health Authority disclosed that Ford's Medicaid Fraud Control Unit only accepted about 40 percent of the fraud cases sent to it for prosecution between 2019 and June 2026. Out of 351 cases referred by state investigators, only 142 moved forward under Ford's watch.
That means more than 200 credible fraud cases were turned away.
Meanwhile, Nevada's own Office of Medicaid Inspector General, working without Ford's help, still recovered 67 percent of what was owed on the cases his office declined. That's real money clawed back through basic state enforcement, no headline-grabbing press release required.
Don't Expect A Quick Answer From Ford's Office
Nevadans probably shouldn't expect a quick answer once Osborn's questions land on Ford's desk. His office has a track record of slow-walking records requests.
In 2023, Review-Journal columnist Victor Joecks asked for documents on how opioid settlement money would be spent, right after Ford announced the state's final settlement deal. A year later, those records still hadn't shown up.
Years before that, Joecks requested records tied to the no-bid contract Ford's office awarded to his old law firm. It took ten months to get a first batch, and most of it turned out to be press releases and Google alerts, not real answers.
And it isn't just lawsuit paperwork.
The Review-Journal requested Ford's 2025 calendar back in August, and as of the most recent reporting, the paper still hadn't received it. Given that history, Nevadans shouldn't hold their breath waiting for a fast, complete response now.
Why This Matters To Conservatives
Conservatives believe in government that can prove its own numbers. If a business claimed $40 million in revenue it could not document, regulators and shareholders would demand answers immediately.
Ford is asking Nevada taxpayers to simply trust a figure that his own state's Medicaid agency says it cannot verify.
That is not accountability. That is a press release.
This matters even more because Ford is currently running for Governor against incumbent Joe Lombardo. Voters deserve to know whether Ford's signature fraud-fighting claim holds up, especially with an election on the line.
What Ford's Critics Are Saying
Gov. Lombardo's campaign wasted no time pressing the issue.
Spokesperson Halee Dobbins said:
“Assemblyman Osborn asked straightforward oversight questions, but the answers he received raised even more.
Why does Aaron Ford decline to prosecute over 60 percent of Medicaid fraud cases that are referred to his office by Nevada Medicaid?
And, if Aaron Ford claims to have recovered more than $40 million in Medicaid fraud, why can Nevada Medicaid only verify $1.6 million of those funds? Where is the money?
These are serious questions, and Nevada taxpayers deserve answers.”
Assemblyman Osborn has been measured, saying the Health Authority's response:
“helps clarify several aspects” but “also raises additional questions.”
To be fair, it's possible some of Ford's $40.9 million is still working through the courts or has not yet been logged in state accounting systems. Ford's office has not released a detailed breakdown.
What Happens Next
Osborn says he will now send his questions directly to Ford's office. Given Ford's role as a candidate for Governor, expect Republicans to keep pressing this story hard through Election Day.
Conservatives who care about honest government should watch closely to see whether Ford answers the questions or stonewalls. Nevadans can contact their own legislators and demand Ford's office produce real documentation before asking voters to trust his purported fraud-fighting record.
Read Assemblyman Osborn's letter and the Nevada Health Authority's response here.
The opinions expressed by contributors are their own and do not necessarily represent the views of Nevada News & Views. This article was written with the assistance of AI. Please verify information and consult additional sources as needed.
