Two years ago, Adrianne Gould’s company was at a crossroads.
As a provider enrolled in Minnesota’s Housing Stabilization Services (HSS) program, LOGO Community Support Services served people on the brink of homelessness, including seniors and those with disabilities.
But in October 2024, Gould wrote a letter to state lawmakers to sound the alarm.
“At one point, the state was behind almost 84 days in approving people for services,” Gould said.
Those “significant delays,” Gould wrote, forced her to decide between serving clients or paying her staff.
She attributed part of the problem to an explosion in the number of companies that had suddenly signed up to participate in Minnesota’s new Medicaid-funded program. A state directory listed more than 1,800 providers last year.
“I think it was too simple,” Gould said. “One of the requirements [the state] asked for was for people to have knowledge of housing supports and things of that nature, but there was not an ask for even a resume.”
While Gould says most of her clients came from referrals, other companies abused the system.
“People would go and stand outside of homeless shelters and basically try to get people to sign up.”
Data now reveals that a spike in claims had the state paying out more than $100 million in 2024, compared to $21 million three years earlier.
Coffee and a phone call
Gould documented her concerns in another letter to the Minnesota Department of Human Services, which operated the HSS program.
“I’m saying, ‘Hey y’all, something’s not right,’” Gould said.
She says she also shared her concerns with Rep. Lisa Demuth, R-Cold Spring, during a phone call with the future House Speaker in December 2024.
That followed a face-to-face meeting with Sen. John Hoffman, DFL-Champlin, a month earlier.
“We went to Caribou Coffee,” Gould said. “We talked about the program.”
Gould referenced the meeting in an email to Hoffman after the meeting, following up on “issues and proposed solutions.”
She says she did not hear any additional follow-up from lawmakers or DHS.
None have commented specifically about the early communication from Gould or what action they took after she reached out in 2024.
“Many people have raised concerns about the HSS program, about the potential fraud taking place,” Sen. Hoffman said in a statement to 5 INVESTIGATES. “In response to what we learned, we passed significant program integrity measures within HSS… Any fraud in state programs is unacceptable.”
‘Credible allegation of fraud’
But those measures came too late. The next communication Gould received from the state arrived on the same day DHS announced plans to terminate Housing Stabilization Services last year.
The letter put Gould on notice that the state was withholding all payments to her company.
“DHS has determined there is a credible allegation of fraud for which an investigation is pending,” the letter said.
Gould said the issue involved billing for one client about whom she had previously communicated with the state.
“I was like, ‘this can’t be real,’” she said.
Gould also received additional letters from managed care organizations seeking repayment, which she is appealing. She has not been charged with a crime.
“Right now they’re just saying that the state has overpaid me,” Gould said. “We followed all of the guidelines that were laid out.”
DHS says it cannot comment on whether it has an open investigation on a specific provider.
Now Gould has renewed her communication with lawmakers, this time writing to members of the House Fraud Committee and its chair, Rep. Kristin Robbins, R-Maple Grove.
“I have consistently supported the state’s efforts to combat fraud,” Gould wrote.
Records show Robbins and her staff exchanged emails with Gould late last year. Robbins told 5 INVESTIGATES she still plans to follow up with Gould.
“I haven’t heard anything from the state,” Gould said. “It would just be nice to know what is going on.”
Source: KSTP