A watchdog group has raised concerns that the Biden-Harris administration used taxpayer resources to distribute a political message to Medicare recipients. The Foundation for Accountability & Civic Trust (FACT) filed a complaint with the U.S. Office of Special Counsel, arguing that the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) breached the Hatch Act by using an official Medicare email list to praise Vice President Kamala Harris.
In September, millions of Medicare recipients received an email from HHS, featuring a message from President Joe Biden. The email highlighted healthcare reforms and credited Harris for her role in achieving these changes, noting her tie-breaking vote on key legislation. The message also repeated the Democratic platform’s assertion that healthcare is a “right.”
The Biden administration using the Medicare recipient email list to push pro-Kamala political messaging to 66 million people is the kind of egregious abuse of power that would dominate airwaves if Trump did it. https://t.co/6FBAmHoGgO
— Matt Whitlock (@mattdizwhitlock) October 28, 2024
FACT’s executive director, Kendra Arnold, contended that the email was inappropriate, stating, “The email was entirely political in both its purpose and language.” She noted that taxpayer-funded communications should not promote any candidate and called for an investigation into the matter.
Several Medicare recipients were dismayed by the message, describing it as a “campaign ad” and expressing frustration over receiving political content from a government email list. FACT highlighted that the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) database was used to send this message, a move Arnold deemed “egregious.”
In its complaint, FACT requested the Office of Special Counsel examine whether HHS officials violated the Hatch Act by using CMS resources to promote Harris. Arnold warned that failing to investigate would encourage future misuse of public funds for political purposes.
FACT, a nonprofit organization based in Washington, D.C., works to promote transparency in government. They hope that the Office of Special Counsel will take immediate action to uphold the Hatch Act’s standards and prevent further political influence in taxpayer-funded communications.
It’s true, Biden and Harris were caught funneling billions of taxpayer funds into Medicare to try and lower premiums before the election, there is several emails regarding it and Kamala was the tie breaking vote in the Senate as VP to allow it to passhttps://t.co/IitfPmJFEd
— Zoro (@lostzoro77) October 23, 2024
