Overview
- Federal prosecutors estimate as much as $9 billion was stolen from Minnesota programs by sham providers and inflated rolls spanning Medicaid, food aid, housing assistance and childcare.
- Whistleblower Faye Bernstein says she flagged risky contracting as early as 2018–2019, describing a lack of guardrails and claiming she was told to stop asking questions and later reassigned.
- Bernstein says public emails from 2024 warned of alleged fraud, raising concerns that repeated notifications were not acted upon.
- Minnesota’s Department of Human Services cites newly released federal data showing an approximate 2.1% Medicaid improper payment rate, below the 6.1% national average, and says additional anti-fraud steps are underway.
- Policy analysts point to systemic flaws—federal funding with state administration, weak enforcement of fraud plans, and incentives to pad rolls—and urge stronger federal oversight and program redesign.