Brian Blase

Christian; President of Paragon Health Institute; Special Asst. to the President at WH National Economic Council '17-'19; Happily married with 5 great kids.

[Brian Blase @brian_blase]

Cell phones have no place in American schools. They harm learning and social connection, and they should be banned during the entire school day.

This is based on the evidence & my experience as a father.

New op-ed from me: https://t.co/XHOb4d9vE3

@Paragon_Inst

[Paragon Health Institute @Paragon_Inst]

Paragon estimates 14.3 million improper enrollees in the ACA exchanges and Medicaid expansion in 2024, about a third of ACA enrollees, at a federal cost of about $65 billion. Mark Howell, Liam Sigaud, and @brian_blase break down the numbers: https://t.co/w850SlCudL

[Paragon Health Institute @Paragon_Inst]

Read @borisvabson's NEWEST ⬇️

[Brian Blase @brian_blase]

There are many policies that would make health care more affordable.

End or scale back wasteful subsidies that perpetuate inefficiencies.

End or scale back regulatory advantages that benefit incumbent providers and insurers & protect them from competition.

[Drew Altman @DrewAltman]

You may see polls ranking “healthcare” third or fourth as a voter priority. That’s NOT the story now. “Health care costs” are a top voter cost of living concern right up there with gas prices. My latest column: https://t.co/adp0VGEw0d

[Brian Blase @brian_blase]

The ACA subsidies are permanent. Larry is referring to the COVID-era boosts that caused massive fraud & improper enrollment.

The underlying subsidies are extremely large and growing on autopilot. See the figure for a fairly typical enrollee.

[Larry Levitt @larry_levitt]

President Trump is sending $500 to some ACA enrollees. Leaving aside the legal issues, it's important to get beyond the headline. The checks go to about 1 million out of 19 million ACA enrollees, and don't come close to the higher costs people face from expired premium subsides.

[Brian Blase @brian_blase]

@larry_levitt Larry, I know you don't mean that the subsidies expire as the underlying subsidies are permanent. You are referring to the COVID-era boosts that caused massive fraud & improper enrollment.

The underlying subsidies are extremely large and growing on autopilot. See figure.

[Niklas Kleinworth @NKleinworth]

The work being done by my colleagues at both the state and federal levels is some of the most impactful in the nation. I am so proud to have been part of Paragon's story since 2022.

Cheers to 5 years!

[Paragon Health Institute @Paragon_Inst]

Paragon turns five. Since 2021, we've produced hundreds of research papers, policy briefs, Prognoses, PICs, and congressional testimonies, and our work has helped produce meaningful policy change.

Our new 2025 Annual Report tells that story: https://t.co/Y2Rp9uiUqx

[Brian Blase @brian_blase]

@Health_Affairs @JohnsHopkinsSPH @HopkinsMedicine @UCSF .@Paragon_Inst has a recent piece from @CPopeHC on why managed care is not working well in Medicaid and lessons that can be learned from Medicare Advantage.

One reason: the corporate welfare through Medicaid to big hospital systems is run through MCOs.

https://t.co/YC8jEimUcN

[Brian Blase @brian_blase]

Not good indeed.

And the #1 problem is the large cost growth of federal health care programs. For policymakers looking for reforms, @Paragon_Inst published a comprehensive set of reforms a few months ago: https://t.co/uiDjLsySb6

[Marc Goldwein @MarcGoldwein]

🚨BREAKING🚨 The U.S. ran a $2 trillion deficit in fiscal year 2026, based on @BudgetHawks estimates.

Interest costs alone were $1.1 trillion, and debt hit 100% of GDP.

Not good!

(link to follow)

[Jeremy Nighohossian @JNighohossian]

The IRA was supposed to reduce the cost of Medicare, but now that it has actually done the opposite, the people who broke the system want taxpayers to bail it out.

[Dr. Bob Onder @BobOnderMO]

Exactly! Unfortunately the mainstream media almost universally reported it as “people losing coverage.”

[Cynthia Cox @cynthiaccox]

Phantom enrollees
Claims are nowhere to be found
Do ghosts fill the rolls?

[Brian Blase @brian_blase]

Correction: they cancelled coverage for 760,000 phantoms! These were fake enrollments created by corrupt call centers and brokers to rip off taxpayers in a poorly designed program.

No SSNs, no claims, a fully subsidized premium, and no contact EVER with the insurer.

[Health Affairs @Health_Affairs]

CMS cancelled federal marketplace coverage for more than 760,000 people and blocked new agents and brokers from offering coverage for 2027. Officials cited concerns about improper enrollment though unauthorized enrollments have dropped significantly. | Forefront

@Katie_Keith | @oneillinstitute

https://t.co/lWX3Nxrw1k

[Brian Blase @brian_blase]

@Health_Affairs @Katie_Keith Correction: they cancelled coverage for 760,000 phantoms! These were fake enrollments created by corrupt call centers and brokers to rip off taxpayers in a poorly designed program.

No SSNs, no claims, a fully subsidized premium, and no contact EVER with the insurer.

[Boris Vabson @borisvabson]

Looking forward to joining this timely Paragon panel on the shortcomings of Medicaid managed care — and on which features of Medicare Advantage might be worth importing into Medicaid as remedies.

[Dr. Oz CMS @DrOzCMS]

The previous administration weakened safeguards around the ACA marketplace and allowed bad actors to flood in.

That’s why @VP Vance’s @WHFraudTF took swift action and EVICTED 760,000 phantom enrollees tied to agents or brokers — cases where enrollees had no SSN, paid $0 in premiums, filed no claims, and never responded when insurers tried to verify their coverage.

The War on Fraud continues.

[Brian Blase @brian_blase]

A truly awesome @Paragon_Inst virtual event will happen on October 14. We have an expert panel examining the differences between Medicare Advantage and Medicaid managed care, including @borisvabson and @CPopeHC.

Register here: https://t.co/DOQIMDnuKQ

[White House Task Force to Eliminate Fraud @WHFraudTF]

Fraud has no place in health care.

That's why @VP Vance and @DrOzCMS are uprooting fraud and saving American taxpayers BILLIONS.

✅ $2.2 BILLION taxpayer dollars saved
✅ 760,000 phantom enrollments removed

[Dr. Oz CMS @DrOzCMS]

Removing the fraud from the ACA Marketplace isn’t just a fiscally smart action for CMS to take — it’s the right one.

CMS and @VP Vance’s @WHFraudTF are saving taxpayers $2.2 BILLION by removing phantom enrollees and bringing trust back into our healthcare programs.

[Brian Blase @brian_blase]

One of our most important comment letters.

Restoring US fiscal sanity requires reigning in the financing schemes that have allowed states to shift more and more costs to federal taxpayers.

[Paragon Health Institute @Paragon_Inst]

States have used provider taxes to draw more federal Medicaid dollars while limiting their own contribution.

In a new comment letter, Paragon supports CMS’s effort to curb these arrangements and recommends stronger safeguards against circumvention.
https://t.co/R45KZnHDd9