$2.95M Medicaid fraud charges spur big expansion of state investigators
Minnesota is expanding its Medicaid Fraud Control Unit by nearly 50% after prosecutors charged a psychotherapist and a home-care operator in an alleged scheme that involved roughly $2.95 million in false claims.[1]
The legislature funded 11 new investigators, three attorneys and four additional staff to handle the increase in work, officials said.[1] The unit currently carries about 220 open cases, and the added staff will let investigators flag suspicious claims and shut off payments sooner.[1]
Psychotherapist Peter Meilahn is charged with 11 counts of felony theft and two counts of identity theft tied to more than 27,000 alleged false Medicaid claims totaling $2.25 million from 2019 to 2026.[1] Investigators say Meilahn billed 468 days with more than 24 hours of services and submitted about $740,000 in claims for 15 people, including seven children in one family, whom he allegedly never saw.[1] Home-care operator Awo Mohamed's company, Always On Time, allegedly billed nearly $700,000 for more than 20,000 hours of services that never occurred, including hours billed while clients were jailed or hospitalized.[1] UCare referred billing anomalies to investigators as the state's monitoring systems improved and began flagging suspicious patterns sooner, officials said.[1]
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📌 Key Facts
- Psychotherapist Peter Meilahn is charged with 11 counts of felony theft and 2 counts of identity theft tied to more than 27,000 alleged false Medicaid claims totaling $2.25 million from 2019–2026.
- Investigators say Meilahn billed for 468 days with more than 24 hours of services and submitted about $740,000 in claims for 15 people, including seven children in one family, whom he allegedly never saw.
- Home‑care operator Awo Mohamed’s company, Always On Time, allegedly billed nearly $700,000 for over 20,000 hours of services that never occurred, including hours billed while clients were jailed or hospitalized.
- Minnesota’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit currently has about 220 open cases and will expand by nearly 50% thanks to new legislative funding for 11 investigators, 3 attorneys and 4 additional staff.
- UCare referred Meilahn’s billing anomalies to investigators, and officials say billing‑pattern monitoring is improving, allowing suspicious claims to be flagged and payments cut off sooner.
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