CMS Will Publish Medicare and Medicaid Billing Data in Open Format to Aid Public Fraud Oversight

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services published a notice in the Federal Register on July 23, 2026, announcing the forthcoming release of Medicare and Medicaid program data in open, machine-readable formats under an open license. The action is authorized under the Open, Public, Electronic, and Necessary Government Data Act, which requires federal agencies to make data assets available for free public use and analysis.

CMS stated that the data release is intended to support public engagement in identifying and preventing fraud, waste, and abuse in the Medicare and Medicaid programs, and to promote accountability and transparency. The agency noted it took steps to protect sensitive beneficiary information before publishing.

The announcement builds on existing data-sharing work at CMS's Data.CMS.gov portal, which already hosts Medicare payment and utilization information. The July 23 notice signals an intent to expand that catalog in formats designed for broader public use.

The move comes as federal attention to improper payments in Medicare remains high. A 2026 Government Accountability Office report, GAO-26-107799, found that CMS's data analytics tools helped prevent an estimated 11.9 billion dollars in potentially fraudulent Medicare payments across fiscal years 2022 through 2024. Advocates for data transparency have argued that wider public access to billing records can help surface potential fraud patterns that formal enforcement sometimes misses.