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$132–251 billion left on the table: Savings the government's auditors found — and nobody took
GAO says acting on its open recommendations could save $132 billion to $251 billion. Past action on its findings has saved $774 billion since 2011.
Congress and federal agencies
- Future savings from open recommendations$132B–$251B1
- Saved since 2011 by acting on GAO's findings≈$774B1
- New recommendations in 2026971
- One fix: equal Medicare rates for office visits$156.9B over 10 years1
- Date the rest gets fixed████████████████
What happened
Every year GAO publishes a report on programs that overlap, duplicate each other, or waste money, with a fix for each. Its May 2026 report added 97 new recommendations.
GAO estimates that acting on the open ones could save $132 billion to $251 billion. One example: paying Medicare the same rate for an office visit no matter where it happens would save $156.9 billion over 10 years.
Why nobody caught it
- Each fix needs an agency or Congress to act, and GAO counts the ones still open every year.
How sure are we?
A watchdog found the waste and the fix. The fix hasn't been made.
GAO's own savings estimates. The $774 billion already saved shows the method works when someone acts on it.
Sources
- GAO identifies major opportunity: implementing open recommendations could deliver $132–251 billion in future savingsU.S. Government Accountability Office · May 12, 2026
- GAO-26-108505: 2026 annual report on duplication, overlap and fragmentationU.S. Government Accountability Office · May 2026
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