With Minnesota's Medicaid fraud, the sky's the limit

For months, it seemed like the total amount of fraud committed in Minnesota was $1,000,000,000. To say that I was skeptical is understatement. Earlier this morning, I wrote this article questioning Rep. Angie Craig's statement that Gov. Tim Walz had aggressively pursued fraudsters. I remained skeptical. Then I spotted this article. That's when I said that, in terms of Minnesota fraud, the sky's the limit. According to Alpha News's article, "Assistant U.S. Attorney Joe Thompson said he thinks a 'significant portion' of $18 billion spent on 14 state-run Medicaid programs could be fraudulent. Asked to elaborate on what a 'significant portion' meant, Thompson said 'half or more.'" Like I said, I knew that $1,000,000,000 figure was definitely low.

While I don't have proof of the $9,000,000,000, I'm willing to trust "Assistant U.S. Attorney Joe Thompson." If anyone's gonna know, he's my go-to guy. Further, like with all things Minnesota Medicaid fraud-related, it's just the tip of the iceberg. (Sorry for mixing metaphors.)

Thompson, who has led the federal government’s fraud prosecutions in Minnesota, made those comments at a press conference on Thursday in Minneapolis. At that press event, the federal prosecutor also unveiled new criminal charges in Minnesota’s ongoing fraud saga.

"Minnesotans and taxpayers deserve to know the truth of the fraud. The fraud is not small. It isn’t isolated. The magnitude cannot be overstated. What we see in Minnesota is not a handful of bad actors committing crimes. It’s a staggering, industrial-scale fraud," said Thompson. "It’s swamping Minnesota and calling into question everything we know about our state."

This shatters Rep. Angie Craig's statement that "I think the governor is taking and his team are taking an aggressive approach to crack down on fraud in Minnesota. They’re prosecuting and putting the folks who are perpetrating the crime in jail."

It's impossible to think that Minnesota has "a staggering, industrial-scale fraud" while Gov. Walz and "his team are taking an aggressive approach to crack down on fraud in Minnesota." Those statements don't fit together.

Time Well Spent:

HSS was just one of many state-run programs that is funded with Medicaid dollars. Three months later, DHS designed 14 Medicaid-funded programs, including HSS, as “high-risk.” Gov. Tim Walz also ordered a third-party audit of those programs.

Those 14 programs include the Early Intensive Developmental and Behavioral Intervention (EIDBI) Benefit, Integrated Community Supports (ICS), Adult Day Services, Nonemergency Medical Transportation services, and others.

This will get your attention virtually immediately:
Assistant U.S. Attorney Joe Thompson on Thursday said the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) pulled claims for 14 programs identified by Minnesota officials as being particularly vulnerable to fraud and found $18 billion in Medicaid billing since 2018. While not all of those payments were illegitimate, Thompson estimated "half or more" of the $18 billion was received through fraudulent means, though he said prosecutors are still working to find the exact number.
I know it's a cliche but with Minnesota's Medicaid fraud, it really seems like the sky is the limit.

UPDATE:

Walz said "I'm grateful for the U.S. Attorney. They build cases, prosecute them and put them in jail. That's what we do around here. First, that isn't what you do! That's what the U.S. Attorney DID! That's what he does for s living. Gov. Walz doesn't have anything to do with prosecuting fraud.

This phrasing isn't accidental, either. It's intentional. He wanted to conflate these things together so he could take credit for part of it.

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