A 2022 Government Accountability Office report estimated that ineligible family members covered through the federal government’s employer-sponsored health care program could cost the government between $250 million and $3 billion per year.
In 2022, the Government Accountability Office issued a report finding that the federal government needs to do more to ensure enrollees in the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program, which provides health insurance to roughly 8 million federal employees, retirees and their families, are eligible for the benefits.
Although the Office of Personnel Management in recent years has issued guidance instructing agencies and insurance carriers to verify the eligibility of family members, GAO argued that the agency should do more, such as its own monitoring program or audit, something OPM has argued is too cost-prohibitive with its current resources. The OPM inspector general has speculated that FEHBP could be improperly providing benefits within the range of $500 million to $3 billion annually.