We have added a new item to Scandal Tracker 2025TM and we are scanning the horizon for more examples of waste, fraud, and abuse.
Give credit to A.J. Lagoe and his investigative team at KARE-11 for the latest addition. KARE-11 looked into the Housing Stabilization Services (HHS) program operated by the state Department of Human Services (DHS) under the Medicaid umbrella. KARE-11 reports,
Minnesota is one of the first states to implement a Medicaid-backed program meant to help the elderly and people with disabilities find and maintain housing. Housing Stabilization Services, or HSS, provides individuals with support through consultation, moving expenses, transition, and sustaining services.
The program is unlicensed, and the Minnesota Department of Human Services (DHS), which administers it, admits the agency is struggling due to unforeseen growth to provide necessary oversight.
It’s always the same song and dance. “Progressive” Minnesota opts in to another optional Medicaid program, immediately the uptake is well beyond the agency’s wildest projections, and it cannot adequately monitor the new unlicensed vendors signing up for the easy money. KARE-11 on the program results so far,
DHS says it currently has 40 active fraud investigations underway into HSS providers.
KARE 11’s investigation of the housing program uncovered evidence that billed services did not happen as claimed, and clients did not receive the help they needed.
KARE-11 charts the program’s staggering growth in this graphic,
As KARE-11 documents, the program went from nothing to $92 million in just a few years.
The NBC station documents a case where a provider billed the state (DHS), on behalf of an HHS client, for $2,060. The client reports that the only tangible benefit she received was a vacuum cleaner. For now, we’re classifying the HSS program under the “waste” category and we’re including a placeholder amount of $1,900 based on the KARE-11 anecdote, as we await the outcome of the reported 40 active investigations.
We’re following another item for our newly created “On The Radar” feature for ScandalTracker. Our friends at AlphaNews have been looking into the transportation of Homeless and Highly Mobile (HHM) students for Minneapolis Public Schools (MPS). Although the program is through MPS, AlphaNews notes that the school district is guaranteed 100 percent reimbursement through state government.
AlphaNews is reporting on an HHM vendor who has billed MPS $millions more h=than allowed under the vendor’s contract.
Meanwhile, at the capitol, the state House of Representatives has passed a budget bill (HF 1837) including some fraud prevention measures. From Session Daily,
Going after fraudulent behavior through withholding payments, adding whistleblower protection and honoring the giant beaver are all aspects of the omnibus state government policy bill.
Not sure how the beaver works into the equation, but it sounds like another example of legislative log-rolling. Session Daily adds,
Going after fraudulent behavior, the bill states “the head of any state agency may withhold payments to a program participant in any program administered by that agency if the agency head determines there is a credible allegation of fraud under investigation and the program participant is a subject of the investigation.”
And a government entity would be permitted to disclose any data to another government entity or law enforcement if the data relates to public program fraud.
As fate would have it, the House Fraud Prevention committee is holding a hearing on Monday morning on the subject of Medicaid fraud.
Stay tuned…