Policy & oversight
CMS Will Publish Medicare and Medicaid Billing Data in Open Format to Aid Public Fraud Oversight
A Federal Register notice dated July 23 announces that CMS will release Medicare and Medicaid program data in machine-readable, open-license formats to help the public, researchers, and watchdogs identify potential fraud, waste, and abuse.
By the Goodsurance editorial teamJuly 20, 2026
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.
CMS will release Medicare and Medicaid billing data in open formats so the public and researchers can help identify fraud.
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.
In plain words
On July 23, 2026, the federal government said it will share Medicare and Medicaid billing records with the public in formats that anyone can download and analyze. A law called the OPEN Government Data Act requires agencies to share data this way. CMS says the release will help people spot possible fraud and overcharging in Medicare and Medicaid. CMS also said it will protect personal health information before releasing anything. This adds to data CMS already shares on its website. A recent government report found that CMS's own data tools helped stop about 11.9 billion dollars in likely fraudulent payments between 2022 and 2024.
Understand the basics first
Source: Federal Register
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