.
When it comes to allegations of Somali fraud, it appears that the state of Minnesota is not alone.
A whistleblower who used to work with an organization that partners with the state of Maine, is now claiming that there is another massive Medicaid scheme taking place in the state of Maine.
The city of Lewiston, Maine has been a destination for Somali migrants for years, much like Minneapolis.
This just reinforces the idea that more investigation is needed.
Maine Medicaid contractor denies fraud allegations; records contradict him
A Maine health services contractor facing fraud allegations from a whistleblower denied the claims and said the former employee never raised concerns during his employment, but records show his manager documented him flagging fraudulent billing.
Gateway Community Services, a Somali American-led organization, issued a press release stating: “These allegations are false.
Gateway Community Services maintains strict billing, documentation, and compliance protocols and has cooperated with state oversight agencies.”
The organization said Christopher Bernardini, who spent seven years working for Gateway, “at no point during his employment did he raise any concerns—formal or informal—related to inaccurate billing, fraud, or impropriety.”…
Bernardini alleges Gateway oversaw a system in which false records were filed about client visits and charged taxpayers for services never provided.
“We started getting some clients calling and saying months later that their client owed them hours. They hadn’t come in for these shifts and stuff. But I had a time card for it,” Bernardini told NewsNation.
When asked if what he witnessed was fraud, he responded, “Absolutely. No doubt about it.”
Local and national Republicans are calling for an investigation into organizations that work with immigrants and receive federal Medicaid funding.
At the same time, we have learned that a Lewiston nonprofit called Gateway Community Services, which provides these services, will be part of the state audit this year, amid ongoing questions about its finances.
We have received documentation showing that between 2015 and 2018, the state overpaid the nonprofit $662,608.
The Maine Department of Health and Human Services said this is a result of two multi-year audits of Gateway Community Services after investigating tens of thousands of billing claims across multiple service categories.
There was another audit done at Gateway that was completed in 2024, which is currently in the appeal process.
Both audits were done as a result of complaints, according to DHHS.
It seems like this Somali fraud issue is more widespread than the media is reporting.
You need to be a member of Citizens' Task Force on Wind Power - Maine to add comments!
Join Citizens' Task Force on Wind Power - Maine