Autism fraud in MN: Providers will start seeing funding again by end of January

Autism fraud in MN: Children face challenges

As Minnesota implements measures to prevent fraud in social service programs, children who are on the autism spectrum could face additional challenges. FOX 9’s Corin Hoggard has the latest.

MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - The Minnesota Department of Human Services (DHS) says funding for autism centers will start rolling out by the end of January. 

Funding for autism centers

What we know:

According to DHS, the first round of claims for funding are currently going through the pre-payment review process with Optum. 

DHS says "unflagged" claims in this first round are set to be paid by Jan. 27. After that, DHS will send payments for unflagged claims will go out to providers every two weeks. 

If the claim is flagged, an additional review is required. DHS may need more information and documents from the provider before they can be paid, causing further delay. DHS says it still expects to pay most claims within 30 days, and "legitimate" claims within 90 days, as required by the federal government. 

Fraud prevention for social services programs

The backstory:

The state is conducting pre-approval reviews on Medicaid claims in 14 high-risk areas, including autism centers. 

Funding for autism centers grew from about $2.2 million in 2018 to $228 million in 2024 while the number of providers jumped from 41 to 439.

The state has investigations going for 85 of them and federal prosecutors got a conviction against Asha Farhan Hassan earlier this month for her role in a $14 million autism fraud scheme.

The federal government sets three levels of screening for providers who bill Medicaid: limited, moderate and high risk.

Autism services are currently designated as moderate risk, but Minnesota designated it as high risk as of June 2025, giving DHS new oversight including unannounced site visits and required screening before Medicaid enrollment.