Senators ask Oz if CMS worked with election-denial groups on nursing home voting guidance
Eight Democratic senators have written to CMS administrator Mehmet Oz asking him to rescind a July 2026 memo on nursing home voting and disclose any contacts with election-denial groups. CMS did not answer questions about such contacts.
1 / 2
The story, neutrally told
Left · 2A group of eight Democratic senators, including Elizabeth Warren, Richard Blumenthal, Alex Padilla, Ron Wyden and Cory Booker, has written to Mehmet Oz, administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), a week before the midterm elections. WiredLC “a group of senators including Elizabeth Warren, Richard Blumenthal, Alex Padilla, Mazie Hirono, Ron Wyden, Kirsten Gillibrand, Jeff Merkley, and Cory Booker wrote in a letter to CMS” Read at Wired ↗ Raw StoryL “Eight senators, including Elizabeth Warren, Richard Blumenthal, Alex Padilla, Ron Wyden and Cory Booker, wrote to Oz” Read at Raw Story ↗ Left · 1They "urgently request that CMS rescind its July 2026 memorandum and reinstate its 2020 and 2024 nursing home voting guidance." WiredLC “urgently request that CMS rescind its July 2026 memorandum and reinstate its 2020 and 2024 nursing home voting guidance.” Read at Wired ↗ Left · 2The July memo withdrew earlier guidance on how nursing home staff could help residents vote, such as assisting with mail-in ballots or arranging transport to polling places, and instead warned of prosecution if staff "engage in inappropriate coercion or other violations of residents' rights." WiredLC “rescinding previous guidance on how staff at nursing homes could help residents to vote by assisting with mail-in voting or transporting residents to polling locations” Read at Wired ↗ Raw StoryL “CMS warned of prosecution for staff who “engage in inappropriate coercion or other violations of residents’ rights.”” Read at Raw Story ↗
Left · 2According to Wired and Raw Story, election-denial groups seized on the memo last month to claim voter fraud was occurring in care facilities, a campaign led by the Election Integrity Network, headed by Cleta Mitchell, a former adviser to President Donald Trump; both outlets call the claim baseless. WiredLC “That campaign was spearheaded by the Election Integrity Network, a group led by Cleta Mitchell, a former adviser to president Donald Trump.” Read at Wired ↗ Raw StoryL “Last month, election denial groups seized on the memo to claim voter fraud was happening inside care facilities.” Read at Raw Story ↗ Left · 1Mitchell said on Steve Bannon's "War Room" show: "These left-wing groups go into the nursing homes, and they go into the group homes, and they basically steal the votes of these most vulnerable." WiredLC ““These left-wing groups go into the nursing homes, and they go into the group homes, and they basically steal the votes of these most vulnerable,” Mitchell said” Read at Wired ↗ Left · 2The senators ask Oz to identify each organisation and individual involved in communications with Mitchell, the Election Integrity Network and Project Civica, a New York-based group, including "the dates and nature of those communications, and any recommendations provided to CMS." WiredLC ““identify each organization and individual involved, the dates and nature of those communications, and any recommendations provided to CMS.”” Read at Wired ↗ Raw StoryL “including “the dates and nature of those communications, and any recommendations provided to CMS.”” Read at Raw Story ↗
Left · 2They also point to an apparent contradiction: in a September reply to an August letter from Warren, Oz wrote that helping a resident request or complete a mail ballot according to their wishes, or arranging transport to a polling place, "is not the type of conduct that would give rise to a voter fraud investigation." The senators ask why CMS has not reinstated the earlier guidance. WiredLC “In August, Warren sent a letter to Oz questioning the July memo and asking him to reverse the changes.” Read at Wired ↗ Raw StoryL ““Why has CMS not reinstated its previous guidance clarifying nursing homes’ responsibilities to facilitate residents’ voting rights?”” Read at Raw Story ↗ Left · 1Warren told Wired: "This is as low as it gets. The Trump administration's unfounded allegations of election fraud are inspiring election denial groups to harass nursing home residents and staff." WiredLC ““This is as low as it gets,” Warren tells WIRED.” Read at Wired ↗ Left · 2A CMS spokesperson did not respond to questions about communications with election-denial groups and referred Wired to the July memo; Mitchell, the Election Integrity Network and Project Civica did not respond to requests for comment. WiredLC “A CMS spokesperson did not respond to questions about the agency’s communications with election denial groups but instead referred WIRED to the July 2026 memo.” Read at Wired ↗ Raw StoryL “Mitchell, the Election Integrity Network and Project Civica did not respond to requests for comment.” Read at Raw Story ↗
Left · 2The letter comes after Trump said on Tuesday he would accept the midterm results if they are "honest elections"; the two outlets add that his administration has spent months promoting unfounded claims about mail-in and noncitizen voting. Raw StoryL “Trump said Tuesday he would accept the midterm results if they are “honest elections,”” Read at Raw Story ↗ WiredLC “his administration has spent months pushing conspiracy theories about mail-in voting and noncitizen voting” Read at Wired ↗
Every sentence links to the reporting it rests on. The pill in front of each says where its sources sit: Left, Centre or Right when one side supplies at least half of them, Mixed when they are evenly split. The number is how many outlets it cites.
Left2 outlets
- Framing
- Both outlets treat the senators' letter as a response to a baseless, far-right conspiracy campaign and present CMS's memo as feeding it. Raw Story's piece is largely a rewrite of Wired's reporting.
- Emphasis
- Warren's 'as low as it gets' quote, the apparent contradiction between Oz's September letter and the unchanged memo, and the timing days before the midterms.
- Leaves out or plays down
- No outlet here includes a CMS or Oz defence of the July memo beyond the referral to it, nor a response from the election-denial groups. Neither explains the memo's stated rationale beyond the prosecution warning. No centre or right outlets covered the story.
- Charged language
- “baseless conspiracy theory”“MAGA plot”“far-right”“election denial groups”
- For example
-
“A far-right campaign claiming leftists are stealing votes from nursing home residents has centered on changing guidance from Mehmet Oz’s Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.” — Wired
“'As low as it gets': Dr. Oz faces new demands over MAGA plot targeting nursing home voters” — Raw Story
Centre0 outlets
No centre outlet in our sources has covered this story yet.
Right0 outlets
No right outlet in our sources has covered this story yet.
What every side reports
- Eight Democratic senators wrote to Oz asking CMS to rescind its July 2026 memo and restore 2020 and 2024 nursing home voting guidance.
- The senators asked for details of any CMS communications with Cleta Mitchell, the Election Integrity Network and Project Civica.
- A CMS spokesperson referred Wired to the July memo rather than answering questions about contacts.
- Mitchell, EIN and Project Civica did not respond to requests for comment.
Mehmet Oz person
Oz, in a September letter to Warren, wrote that neutral logistical help such as requesting or completing a mail ballot per the resident's wishes, or arranging transport, would not give rise to a voter fraud investigation. He has not publicly answered the new letter in the coverage.
“is not the type of conduct that would give rise to a voter fraud investigation,” Oz writes.” — Wired
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services organisation
CMS issued the July 2026 memo warning of prosecution for coercion or rights violations; its spokesperson did not answer questions about contacts with election-denial groups and pointed to the memo.
“A CMS spokesperson did not answer questions about the agency’s communications with election denial groups and instead referred WIRED to the July memo.” — Raw Story
Left2 articles
-
WiredLC ·
Senators Demand to Know if Dr. Oz Collaborated With Election Denial Groups
Critical Original reporting presenting the senators' letter against a backdrop of what it calls baseless conspiracy theories and administration efforts to disenfranchise voters.
-
'As low as it gets': Dr. Oz faces new demands over MAGA plot targeting nursing home voters
Critical Aggregates Wired's reporting under a combative headline, calling the campaign a 'MAGA plot'.
Centre0 articles
No coverage yet.
Right0 articles
No coverage yet.
- 28 Oct 14:46 First WiredLC Senators Demand to Know if Dr. Oz Collaborated With Election Denial Groups
- 28 Oct 16:06 +1h 20m Raw StoryL 'As low as it gets': Dr. Oz faces new demands over MAGA plot targeting nursing home voters
Times are when each article was published, or when we first saw it if the outlet gave no time.
Ask about this story
Loading…