Overview
- CMS says it will defer $515 million per quarter from 14 Minnesota Medicaid programs it labeled high risk after rejecting the state’s corrective plan as deficient.
- Minnesota has filed an administrative appeal and says CMS has offered a hearing, while state leaders met Wednesday with Administrator Mehmet Oz to seek a resolution.
- DHS officials say they have launched audits, paused some payments up to 90 days, and imposed enrollment moratoriums in the highest‑risk programs but argue the federal step is unprecedented.
- A federal judge has temporarily blocked the administration from halting child care, TANF and Social Services Block Grant funds to Minnesota and four other states as lawsuits proceed.
- HHS already paused some child‑care payments pending attendance documentation, and USDA suspended unspecified grants to Minnesota and Minneapolis, as providers and caregivers warn of service disruptions.