TV doctor and former heart surgeon vows to fight healthcare fraud at Senate hearing for health role

Dr Mehmet Oz promised senators on Friday to fight healthcare fraud and push to make Americans healthier if he becomes the next leader of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

But the former heart surgeon and TV personality dodged several opportunities to say broadly whether he would oppose cuts to Medicaid, the government-funded program for people with low incomes.

Oz, Donald Trump’s pick to be the next CMS administrator, also said technology such as artificial intelligence and telemedicine can be used to make care more efficient and expand its reach.

“We have a generational opportunity to fix our healthcare system and help people stay healthy for longer,” he said in his opening remarks.

He faced over two and a half hours of questioning before the Republican-controlled Senate finance committee, which will vote later on whether to forward his nomination to the full Senate for consideration.

Leading the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services presents a “monumental opportunity” to make the country healthier, Oz told senators on Friday morning.

“We don’t have to order people to eat healthy, we have to make it easier for people to be healthy,” adding that he considered maintaining good health a “patriotic duty”.

Republicans, who have coalesced around Trump’s nominees for the health agencies, asked Oz about his plans for eliminating fraud from the $1tn programs.

Democrats, meanwhile, tried to pin him down on potential cuts to the state and federally funded Medicaid program that Republicans are considering.

The 64-year-old was a respected heart surgeon who turned into a popular TV pitchman. Now he has his sights on overseeing health insurance for about 150 million Americans enrolled in Medicare, Medicaid or Affordable Care Act coverage.