9 Minnesota providers charged with $3M in Medicaid fraud, AG says

Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison on Tuesday afternoon announced that nine providers have been charged with defrauding the Medicaid program out of more than $3 million.  

The office's Medicaid Fraud Control Unit filed the charges. 

One of the nine charged — Peter Jason Meilahnm,  a Duluth psychotherapy provider — is accused of submitting about 27,000 false claims for services not rendered, totaling more than $2.2 million in fraud.

Nineteen charges were filed against a Roseville home care agency owner and three other defendants for billing $675,000 for services not rendered and not eligible for reimbursement. 

"The many charges we are filing today allege various amounts of fraud, but even one dollar stolen in defrauding a government program is too much," Ellison said in a news releasae. "It outrages me that some people steal taxpayer money that we as a society have decided should support low-income folks who need specialized services so they can live with dignity, safety, and respect. Our job in Attorney General's Office is to root out these Medicaid fraudsters and hold them accountable, no matter how much or how little they steal. Anyone even thinking about stealing from Medicaid needs to know we take that job very seriously and we are very good at it." 

Last week, Minnesota's legislative watchdog urged the state to strengthen oversight of Medicaid-funded services after an assessment found the vulnerabilities could lead to fraud, waste and abuse.

According to the summary released Thursday, the Optum assessment identified vulnerabilities involving eligibility requirements, billing and coding practices, provider oversight and information technology controls. The report said weaknesses in those areas could increase the risk of improper payments or exploitation of state-funded programs.

Based on its review, the Office of the Legislative Auditor recommended stronger fraud detection efforts, clearer program requirements and enhanced technology systems capable of identifying suspicious billing patterns before payments are made.

This story will be updated.