Overview
- Attorney Mehek Cooke alleges a yearslong, multi‑million‑dollar scheme in Ohio’s Somali community that she says resembles the Minnesota cases.
- Cooke says providers were pressured to have doctors rubber‑stamp approvals for relatives as paid caregivers, with some clinicians receiving kickbacks.
- She describes recruiters using neighborhood “door knockers,” coaching seniors to mislead physicians, and “ghost billing” for services never provided.
- According to Cooke, Ohio’s rules let family caregivers be paid as much as $91,000 per person per year, a structure she says is being exploited.
- The claims surface as Minnesota prosecutions over alleged Somali‑linked fraud top $1 billion in suspected losses; WSBT reports Ohio’s Medicaid agency was asked for comment.