Rep. Bobby Scott (D-VA) requested on Friday, October 9, 2026, that the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) inspector general investigate whether the agency provided false or fraudulent information during active litigation. The request follows reports concerning the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) and its access to federal information systems beginning in January 2025.
The inquiry centers on the actions of the DOGE team, formerly led by Elon Musk, who were granted access to the federal government’s payment systems. According to Scott, this access included sensitive personal data of tens of millions of Americans, such as social security numbers, taxpayer IDs, and home addresses. DOGE also accessed systems within HHS that manage hundreds of billions of dollars in annual payments to healthcare providers, leading to lawsuits from labor unions and privacy advocates.
Scott’s request for an inspector general probe was prompted by the agency's refusal to cooperate with an independent assessment by the Government Accountability Office (GAO). The GAO sought to observe HHS IT systems, but the agency declined, citing concerns that materials provided to the GAO might not match information already produced in ongoing court cases. During a House Education and Workforce Committee hearing on April 17, 2026, HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. did not clarify the nature of these potential discrepancies.
In a follow-up letter dated May 17, 2026, Scott asked Secretary Kennedy for a detailed explanation regarding the "discrepancies" mentioned to the GAO and whether the department had provided inaccurate information in court. The Virginia Democrat stated that the department has not responded to multiple requests to refute allegations of providing misinformation to the legal system. The inspector general, Thomas March Bell, has been asked to initiate the investigation immediately.
On a concrete level, the outcome of this investigation may influence how federal agencies secure personal data and manage third-party access to sensitive information. Taxpayers and Medicaid or Medicare providers might notice changes in how their information is handled or how payments are processed if new security protocols are mandated. The scale of the data involved—affecting tens of millions of individuals—means that a large portion of the U.S. population has a direct stake in the security of these specific HHS information systems.
The investigation also sets a precedent for how executive departments interact with federal watchdogs like the GAO. A finding of non-cooperation or the provision of inaccurate information could lead to stricter oversight requirements for federal agencies during transitions or when outside entities are granted system access. The inspector general has not yet announced a formal start date for the investigation or a timeline for a final report. Secretary Kennedy and HHS have not provided a public response to the latest request as of October 9, 2026.