Minnesota woman accused in $21 million autism fraud scheme pleads not guilty

A 55-year-old Minnesota woman accused in a $21 million autism fraud scheme pleaded not guilty to charges of healthcare fraud and money laundering Tuesday morning.

According to the indictment, Shamso Ahmed Hassan was one of several owners of Smart Therapy Center and Star Autism Center. As part of the scheme, she submitted false claims to Minnesota Medicaid's Early Intensive Developmental and Behavioral Intervention Program for services that were never provided.

The charges say that she, along with her co-conspirators, would recruit parents to enroll children in their autism programs, regardless of medical necessity, and pay them kickbacks of $300 to $1,500 a month.

Between May 2020 and December 2024, Hassan billed Medicaid for $46.6 million and received $21.1 million, the indictment says. She spent the money on property and sent some of the funds overseas, the charges say.

Hassan was charged along with one of her alleged co-conspirators. She faces charges of conspiracy to commit healthcare fraud, healthcare fraud and money laundering.

Neither Hassan nor her attorney would answer questions as she left court. She is not in custody.

Smart Therapy Center's business office in Minneapolis and Star Autism Center's office in St. Cloud were raided by the FBI in December 2024 as an outgrowth of the investigation into the $250 million Feeding Our Future scandal. A year later, one of the other owners of Smart Therapy Center pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud.

Hassan is one of 15 people federally charged last week in a series of Medicaid fraud schemes that prosecutors say cost taxpayers $90 million. 

Colin McDonald, the assistant attorney general for the national fraud enforcement division, said the autism program cost the state $600,000 just six years ago, but the cost has since skyrocketed to $400 million.