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Vivek Ramaswamy said he would \u201caggressively\u201d prosecute the kind of fraud uncovered by The Daily Wire if elected governor of Ohio, saying lawmakers had too long \u201cturned a blind eye\u201d to government waste.<\/span><\/p>\n Ramaswamy told Daily Wire co-founder Ben Shapiro<\/a> on Tuesday that he would crack down on rampant fraud in Ohio subsidized by taxpayer dollars. His comments came after Daily Wire investigative reporter Luke Rosiak <\/span>published a story<\/span><\/a> revealing that Ohio was paying people under the guise of \u201chome healthcare\u201d to do \u201cchores\u201d like cooking and cleaning for their own families, paid for by Medicaid.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cDaily Wire\u2019s reporting was really intriguing to me. I wish I could say that it was a shock compared to what I hear on the ground,\u201d he said. \u201cUnfortunately, it was not a shock, but I appreciate you putting a national spotlight on it in my own home state.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cWhen I am in power, hopefully if we\u2019re elected, we\u2019re not going to sweep it under the rug. We\u2019ve got to prosecute aggressively,\u201d Ramaswamy added.<\/span><\/p>\n Ramaswamy made the comments as Republicans head to the polls Tuesday to choose their gubernatorial nominee. He is widely expected to win the Republican nomination, with most polls showing him with a commanding lead.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Rosiak reported Monday that Ohio spent a billion dollars on home health care in 2024, the last year for which data is available. What these funds went toward was difficult to verify because they often went toward \u201chome health care\u201d performed in private residences by family members of those getting the care.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n To address the apparent widespread fraud, Ramaswamy said he would start by enforcing the laws already on the books.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cI think that the reality is all states, including Ohio, have turned a blind eye to this level of rampant fraud, of the welfare system broadly, including Medicaid,\u201d he told Shapiro. \u201cAnd it starts, Ben, with enforcing the laws that are already on the books.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n He said that the prosecutions would help create deterrence for people to stop bilking taxpayers.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s not really even bilking the government so much as bilking the taxpayer, the ordinary law-abiding American, the ordinary law-abiding Ohioan. \u2029That\u2019s not OK. And we have to send that deterrent signal,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Part of the problem is that the federal government currently reimburses the states for welfare expenses, which Ramaswamy said creates a flawed incentive structure for local state politicians to keep doling out benefits while the federal government handles the burden.\u00a0<\/span>Ramaswamy said he would work with the Trump administration to correct this incentive structure.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n