Minnesota family says insurance pulled crucial coverage that would keep their daughter out of the hospital

Parents of medically fragile children found out certain insurance companies are cutting back coverage, which for those families with 24/7 care, is causing alarm and sleepless nights.

For six straight years, the Kies family in Anoka, Minnesota, has been in love and on guard every single second of the day.

"I'd see disabled kids growing up and stuff when I think anything about it, but living it, it's a whole other experience because you have no idea what it's going to be like," said Samantha Keis.

Her daughter Guinevere was supposed to be born in October, but came in early July after Samantha Keis' uterus erupted.

Now the family is facing a new emergency. Their insurer, Medica, announced they are only partially covering the 24/7 registered nursing care they need to keep Guinevere out of the hospital.

"And as soon as she called me, I started calling every three-letter agency that I could think of. I'm calling the county. I'm calling DHS. I'm calling lawyers. I'm calling Medica. You know, asking them what's going on. This has to be a mistake," said father Nick Keis.

Medica says they routinely review coverage and make changes and suggest clients get more support from the county or Medicaid. 

The parents tried to get legislators to intervene. 

DFL Sen. Liz Bolden worked to get bipartisan support, but in the end, she couldn't get lawmakers to act.

"I mean, the bottom line I think for these insurance companies is this is about money for them," said Bolden. "For these families, it is about care for their kids. And so, you know, that is really an imbalance here."

For these families, there's an Oct. 1 deadline for insurers, and say there's one person who could act: Gov. Tim Walz.

Bolden says she's been in contact with Walz' office, and it's in his hands. 

"The governor's been made aware of this back at the beginning of the year. He's had more than enough time to react to this," said Bolden. "I mean, he has a child with disabilities. He understands the complexity."

Medica originally provided a statement to WCCO which said: 

"We routinely review how we manage benefits on behalf of members to ensure we're aligned with state laws and other insurance carriers regarding how we administer benefits. In 2026 we have made changes to how benefits are administered for individuals who are dual enrolled with a Medica plan and enrolled in Minnesota's Medical Assistance program. We notified impacted members in May 2025 and recommended they work with their county waiver case manager to help avoid any disruption in care once plan benefit limits have been reached because home care services are a covered Medicaid benefit."

WCCO received a statement from a spokesperson for the governor: 

"Governor Walz shares the valid concerns of these families with complex medical needs. He believes strongly that the state legislature can and should strengthen protections for Minnesota kids with disabilities. In the meantime, he has instructed the Department of Commerce to explore any potential administrative solutions. The Governor also believes these insurance companies should not be let off the hook for trying to make an outrageous profit off the families that most urgently need assistance."