House Republicans escalated scrutiny of Minnesota on Tuesday, announcing a broad investigation into alleged fraud plaguing the state’s social services and Medicaid programs. The move comes amid mounting concerns that taxpayer-funded health initiatives have been exploited on what lawmakers describe as an industrial scale, with vulnerable Americans paying the price.
The House Energy and Commerce Committee said it is opening a formal investigation into extensive fraud schemes in Minnesota, citing damage to government-funded health programs and a need to protect limited taxpayer resources. In a joint statement, Committee Chair Brett Guthrie of Kentucky, along with Reps. John Joyce of Pennsylvania and Morgan Griffith of Virginia, said Congress has an obligation to ensure federal dollars are used responsibly and not siphoned off by fraudsters or foreign actors.
The lawmakers said the investigation represents the next step in the committee’s long-standing effort to eliminate waste, fraud, mismanagement, and abuse in federal health programs nationwide. According to a source who spoke with NewsNation, the probe will zero in on state-administered Medicaid programs and is expected to operate on a massive scale.
As part of the investigation, the GOP-led panel plans to press Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz to turn over extensive documentation by the end of the month. Lawmakers are demanding details on audits related to 14 social services programs that the state itself has previously identified as vulnerable to high-risk provider types. The committee is seeking audits, records, and internal documents dating back to 2019 to determine whether state officials should have recognized, detected, or prevented fraudulent activity.
In a letter to Walz, Republican lawmakers emphasized that safeguarding Medicaid integrity is essential to preserving access to health care for those who depend on it most. They warned that every dollar lost to fraud is a dollar taken away from children, pregnant women, seniors, and people with disabilities.
The committee is also requiring Walz to produce all communications involving state Medicaid Commissioner John Connolly, as investigators examine how oversight was handled and whether warning signs were ignored.
According to the letter, several Minnesota Medicaid programs were structured in ways that made them particularly susceptible to abuse. Lawmakers highlighted the Housing Stabilization Support program, which was created to help seniors and people with disabilities find and maintain housing. Instead of directly providing housing, the program paid consultants to assist with housing searches, a structure the committee says attracted fraudsters nationwide due to low barriers to entry and minimal oversight of reimbursements.
Guthrie alleged that Walz’s administration willfully ignored whistleblower reports, further allowing fraudulent schemes to flourish unchecked. The letter warned that if Minnesota fails to comply with federal Medicaid requirements, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services could begin withholding Medicaid funds until the state implements a corrective action plan to address widespread fraud, waste, and abuse.
The committee’s action follows the resignation of Joseph H. Thompson, who stepped down as First Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Minnesota after overseeing a federal investigation into allegations that Minnesota social services programs defrauded the federal government of millions of dollars.
Walz, who has dropped his reelection bid amid the ongoing fraud controversy, called Thompson’s departure a “huge loss for our state.” He claimed it was another example of the administration pushing out nonpartisan career professionals from the Justice Department and replacing them with loyalists.
As the House investigation ramps up, Minnesota now faces intensified federal scrutiny over whether its leadership failed to stop what lawmakers say became rampant abuse of taxpayer-funded programs.
