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Grand jury finds $10 million in Hope Florida funds 'misappropriated'
A Florida grand jury concluded that $10 million from a Medicaid-related settlement with Centene Corp., a for-profit healthcare entity, was misappropriated and ultimately used for political purposes by the DeSantis administration, but said there was insufficient evidence to charge anyone involved criminally.
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. - Florida Democrats are calling for additional investigations and the resignations of two top state officials after a leaked grand jury report found that $10 million from a Medicaid settlement was "misappropriated" before money ultimately flowed to political committees.
The grand jury, however, did not find sufficient probable cause to pursue criminal charges, and Gov. Ron DeSantis, Attorney General James Uthmeier and U.S. Sen. Ashley Moody have rejected allegations of wrongdoing.
The grand jury was convened last year to investigate how money from a $67 million settlement between Florida and Medicaid vendor Centene was distributed after lawmakers raised allegations of fraud and abuse during the 2025 legislative session. The roughly $67 million settlement was reached after the state said Centene over billed Florida for prescription drugs.
Allegations of fraud and abuse
The backstory:
The grand jury proceedings followed a Florida House investigation led by Republican state Rep. Alex Andrade of Pensacola in 2025.
The grand jury report said "allegations of fraud and abuse" raised by Andrade led to the proceedings, undercutting claims that the underlying allegations originated solely with Democrats.
At the center of the dispute is Hope Florida, an initiative championed by First Lady Casey DeSantis, intended to be "a cost-efficient alternative to government assistance programs by connecting eligible residents with churches and other charities across Florida to provide services." Its foundation received the $10 million as part of the state's settlement with Centene.
The Agency for Health Care Administration, which oversees Florida's Medicaid program, negotiated the settlement. Moody was Florida's attorney general at the time, and her deputy was authorized to sign the agreement.
Uthmeier was serving as DeSantis' chief of staff when the settlement and subsequent transfers occurred.
DeSantis appointed Moody to the U.S. Senate in January 2025 after Marco Rubio became U.S. Secretary of State. DeSantis then appointed Uthmeier to replace Moody as attorney general in February 2025.
Both Moody and Uthmeier are on the ballot in November.
What we know:
Centene initially offered Florida $67,048,611 in February 2023 to resolve potential liability involving its pharmacy benefits management practices.
Based on the grand jury's findings, a September 2024 settlement ultimately directed about $57 million to the state and $10 million to the Hope Florida Foundation, according to the report.
The grand jury found that $10 million was later divided into two $5 million grants which were redirected to Secure Florida's Future and Save Our Society from Drugs, both 501(c)(4) organizations.
Days later, the two organizations gave a combined $8.5 million to Keep Florida Clean, a political committee chaired by Uthmeier, who was DeSantis' chief of staff at the time.
Keep Florida Clean subsequently sent $1.23 million to the Florida Freedom Fund, another political committee chaired by Uthmeier, and $7 million to the Republican Party of Florida, $2 million of which was returned to Keep Florida Clean, according to the report.
The grand jury sought to answer the following questions: "Why was the original settlement agreement changed in this way? Who made that change? And did the spending of the $10 million dollars constitute criminal or irregular conduct on the part of the public officials involved? Also, did these actions constitute illegal conversion of monies?"
Grand jury traces millions into political spending
Dig deeper:
A forensic accountant traced the money from Centene through Hope Florida and the two nonprofits.
According to the report, Secure Florida's Future transferred $3.75 million to Keep Florida Clean, while Save Our Society from Drugs transferred $4.75 million. Keep Florida Clean later sent $7 million to the Republican Party of Florida and $2 million back to the committee, resulting in a net $5 million transfer to the state party. Remaining funds were transferred to the Florida Freedom Fund, another political committee chaired by Uthmeier.
The money was used in part to oppose Amendment 3, the unsuccessful 2024 ballot measure that sought to legalize recreational marijuana in Florida.
The grand jury found that leaders of both nonprofits mischaracterized how they intended to use their Hope Florida grants and then used the money for political purposes contrary to representations made in their grant applications. It described the movement of the money as part of a "sophisticated scheme to fund political activities."
Grand jury says taxpayer money was misappropriated
The grand jury rejected an argument that the $10 million payment to Hope Florida represented a separate "bonus" from Centene rather than money belonging to taxpayers.
It concluded the entire Centene settlement was taxpayer reimbursement and found the decision to characterize $10 million as a bonus was inconsistent with Centene's original settlement offer.
The grand jury also concluded that the decision to direct the $10 million to Hope Florida was intended to circumvent Florida laws governing the handling and appropriation of money received by the state.
"We also find that the donation of these taxpayer funds violates the spirit of Florida Statute Sections 45.062(1) and (5)," the grand jury wrote.
The report said the settlement was intended to compensate Florida for Medicaid overpayments and concluded that taxpayer money should have been treated as such "instead of being allocated for partisan political purposes and without transparency."
No criminal charges recommended
Despite concluding that the $10 million was misappropriated, the grand jury said it could not determine who should be held criminally responsible.
"Nobody will take responsibility for deciding the $10 million of taxpayer money would go to Hope Florida," the report said.
The grand jury said virtually everyone involved was a lawyer who relied on advice from other lawyers, creating what it described as an obstacle to criminal prosecution.
"While we can't prove who is responsible, we can plainly see that taxpayer money was misused for political purposes," the grand jury concluded.
‘A highly orchestrated scheme’
What they're saying:
David Jolly, a former Republican congressman who is now the Democratic nominee for governor, said he would support another investigation if elected.
"It’s a highly orchestrated scheme to launder Medicaid money from childrens’ health services into the First Lady’s charity, to be passed through to political committees for the governor," Jolly said during an online call with reporters. "It is clear it’s a violation of the law."
All 12 Democrats in the Florida Senate also called for Uthmeier and Moody to resign.
"The grand jury report in the Hope Florida case is truly damning," the senators said in a joint statement.
They said the $10 million was "knowingly and willingly misappropriated in a sophisticated scheme that the grand jury found was motivated by partisan political purposes."
"Ten million dollars meant for sick children was diverted into a political operation. They don't get to shrug this off. They don't get to call it a ‘nothingburger.’ This is blatant corruption," said Nikki Fried, Chair of the Florida Democratic Party.
‘This is a hoax’
The other side:
Moody disputed the characterization of her office's involvement. She said AHCA negotiated the settlement, her office was "one of multiple agencies that signed the final agreement" and it "had no knowledge of how funds would be spent" by the Hope Florida Foundation.
"Attempts to characterize this any other way are disingenuous," Moody said in a statement posted on X.
Uthmeier also rejected accusations of wrongdoing and pointed to the grand jury's decision not to pursue charges.
"Nobody did anything wrong here," Uthmeier said during an appearance in The Villages, adding that "there was not even probable cause to move forward."
"This is a hoax, and all it did was show that the Democrats can’t win on policy, and they can’t win on the law," Uthmeier said.
DeSantis defended the settlement during an event in Lake City and criticized the disclosure of the confidential report.
"The only crime that was apparent was with whoever leaked the grand jury report," DeSantis said.
"The settlement that AHCA did was legally sound," he added. "It was appropriate, and it advanced the interests of the state."
Grand jury calls for changes to Florida law
What's next:
The grand jury recommended that lawmakers require money received by the state to be deposited into the General Revenue Fund and establish consequences for violations.
It also recommended clearer laws governing how direct-support organizations can use taxpayer money, including requirements to track and monitor those funds and penalties for violating the rules.
The Source: This story was written based on reporting by FOX 35's Marie Edinger, the News Service of Florida, and the Associated Press. Information was also obtained from a report by a grand jury convened in Florida's Second Judicial Circuit.