One Duluth psychotherapist kept billing Minnesota’s Medicaid program for months after he had stopped seeing patients, according to Attorney General Keith Ellison’s office. The charge: 27,400 separate claims for therapy never delivered, worth $2.2 million. It is the largest of nine fraud cases Ellison announced from his Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, together covering $3 million in illegally obtained funds.
“The many charges we are filing today allege various amounts of fraud, but even one dollar stolen in defrauding a government program is too much,” Ellison said. He added that it outrages him when people steal money meant to help low-income Minnesotans live with dignity, safety and respect.
The cases
Peter Meilahn, of Duluth, faces 11 felony theft counts and two felony identity-theft counts. The attorney general’s office alleges he “frequently saw patients on a handful of occasions, yet continued billing for months after he stopped treating the patients.”
Four more defendants are tied to one home-care agency, Always on Time, which provides personal care assistant services. Its owner, Awo Mohamed of Roseville, faces six felony theft counts for billing $675,000 for services not rendered or not eligible for reimbursement. Three others are accused of helping her scheme: Mark Anthony Johnson of Brooklyn Park (four counts) and Qalid Hussein Hassan of Bloomington (three counts), both personal care assistants there, and Angela Ruth Johnson of Minneapolis (six counts), accused of letting the business bill for services not rendered.
The remaining four are individual providers:
Kiddjazzminne Cherrall Freeman of Minneapolis is charged with theft and exploiting a vulnerable adult. Prosecutors say she billed $17,000 for services not provided, used more than $11,000 of a vulnerable adult’s money for herself, and took their EBT card. Michelle Tyrese Lucas Reed of Minneapolis faces six felony theft counts over $42,000 billed while she was allegedly clocked in at other jobs, including with Hennepin County and North Memorial Hospital. Letrice Spigner of Minneapolis faces five theft counts for claiming $77,000 while working elsewhere. Chala Bekama Alemo of St. Paul faces four theft counts over $34,000 for care he allegedly never provided.
Federal partners
The charges were announced in coordination with the US Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General. Its special agent in charge, Thomas Ethridge, said anyone who exploits Medicaid, “whether through multimillion-dollar schemes or by abusing the people they are entrusted to care for,” will be held fully accountable.
Ellison said the fraud unit has prosecuted 358 Medicaid fraud cases since 2019 and won $90 million in judgments and recoveries.
