President Trump’s administration just dropped the hammer on health care fraud in Minnesota.
On May 21, the Justice Department announced criminal charges against 15 defendants over alleged schemes involving more than $90 million in intended loss.
DOJ says the cases include the two largest Medicaid fraud cases ever charged in the state and the largest autism fraud scheme ever charged by the federal government.
The White House framed the crackdown in blunt terms this week:
Minnesota’s fraud schemes are finished.
The days of scamming American taxpayers are DONE. pic.twitter.com/FxofWWThG1
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) May 28, 2026
Vice President JD Vance chairs President Trump’s Task Force to Eliminate Fraud, the White House-backed effort DOJ says is tied to the crackdown.
The warning is plain: steal taxpayer money and the task force will find you.
The charges hit owners of child care centers and various Medicaid providers.
The Justice Department laid out the core of the takedown this way:
The Justice Department today announced the Minnesota Health Care Fraud Takedown, which resulted in criminal charges against 15 defendants, including owners of child care centers and various Medicaid providers, for their alleged participation in various fraud schemes involving over $90 million in intended loss, including the two largest Medicaid fraud cases ever charged in the District and first-of-their kind charges involving additional Medicaid programs.
The Justice Department also announced a major investment in combatting Medicaid fraud through a significant expansion of the Division’s Health Care Fraud Section, allocating funding to permit the hiring of 15 new Trial Attorney positions to combat Medicaid fraud across the United States.
“Today, we are holding scammers accountable who ripped off the American taxpayer and harmed those deserving legitimate assistance from these programs,” said Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche.
That is a serious enforcement move, and DOJ says the prosecutions are only part of the broader push.
DOJ is adding 15 new trial attorneys to fight Medicaid fraud nationwide, building the enforcement structure beyond one press conference.
The Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General also lists the Minnesota takedown as a federal criminal and civil enforcement action.
The scale of the broader health care fraud fight is staggering.
DOJ says its Health Care Fraud Strike Force Program has charged more than 6,200 defendants since 2007.
Those defendants collectively billed federal health care programs and private insurers more than $45 billion, according to the department.
The Minnesota cases tie directly into the structure President Trump and Vance set up earlier this year.
The Justice Department connected the takedown to that anti-fraud machinery:
On April 7, the Department of Justice announced the creation of the National Fraud Enforcement Division. The core mission of the Fraud Division is to zealously investigate and prosecute those who steal or fraudulently misuse taxpayer dollars.
Department of Justice efforts to combat fraud support President Trump’s Task Force to Eliminate Fraud, a whole-of-government effort chaired by Vice President J.D. Vance to eliminate fraud, waste, and abuse within Federal benefit programs.
The Department of Justice’s Health Care Fraud Strike Force Program, currently comprised of nine strike forces operating in federal districts across the country, has charged more than 6,200 defendants who collectively billed federal health care programs and private insurers more than $45 billion since 2007.
In addition, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with the Office of the Inspector General for the Department of Health and Human Services, are taking steps to hold providers accountable for their involvement in health care fraud schemes.
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That is the difference between talking about fraud and actually chasing it.
A whole-of-government task force, a dedicated fraud division, new prosecutors, and record charges in one state all point in the same direction.
All 15 defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in court.
But the signal from the top is unmistakable.
Programs meant for children and patients are not a piggy bank, and this administration intends to prove it case by case.
