CMS Decertifies Hawai’i Medicaid Fraud Control Unit

In a June 4,2026 letter, Department of Health and Human Services Inspector General March Bell notified Hawaii Attorney General Anne Lopez that the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit (MFCU) in Hawaii would be decertified. The letter cites lack of appropriate oversight and failure to bring fraud indictments, despite recent growth in Hawaii's Medicaid enrollment and expenditures.

The state receives about $3 million annually to operate their MFCU, which is responsible for investigating fraud, along with allegations of abuse and neglect in hospitals and other institutional settings. This announcement comes on the heels of the May 13 letter sent to all attorneys general warning of this possible outcome and threatening further action from CMS. As CMS continues their review of MFCUs, this could be first of many letters outlining decertification and possible loss of funding.