A new state audit has confirmed nearly $12 million in public assistance fraud across Massachusetts benefit programs in 2025. The findings raise serious questions about oversight, accountability, and stewardship of taxpayer dollars in a state already facing budget pressures. Fiscal watchdogs say the report underscores systemic weaknesses that allow abuse to continue unchecked.
The Bureau of Special Investigations, operating under Diana DiZoglio, completed more than 4,000 investigations during the fiscal year ending June 30, 2025. Investigators identified $11,952,288 in fraudulent or improper benefit payments across multiple state-administered programs. Officials acknowledged the total likely understates the true scale of fraud due to detection limits.
The largest share of losses occurred within the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, where fraudulent payments exceeded $4.1 million. The state’s Medicaid system, MassHealth, accounted for more than $1.3 million in improper payouts. Additional fraud was identified in cash assistance and disability-related programs.
Investigators were able to recover nearly $800,000 through civil actions and restitution orders. Even with those recoveries, millions in taxpayer funds were permanently lost. The audit stressed that many cases involve intentional misrepresentation of income, household size, or employment status.
Republican lawmakers cited the report as evidence that Massachusetts has failed to enforce basic eligibility safeguards. Critics argue lax verification policies and resistance to federal data-sharing efforts have weakened enforcement. They maintain that protecting vulnerable families requires strong controls, not permissive systems that invite exploitation.
The audit does not include separate criminal cases currently pursued by federal prosecutors, some involving identity theft and multi-state fraud schemes. Those cases suggest broader vulnerabilities in public benefit systems that remain unresolved.
