Minnesota Woman Convicted in $3.6 Million Medicaid Fraud

A Minnesota woman has been convicted by a federal jury in St. Paul for orchestrating a scheme that defrauded the Minnesota Medicaid Housing Stabilization Services (HSS) Program of $3. 6 million.

Sharmaine Meadows, 45, of Lake Elmo, Minnesota, was found guilty of three counts of health care fraud, the U. S. Attorney's Office announced.

According to the Justice Department, Meadows executed a fraudulent scheme involving false billing for housing services that were never provided. The HSS Program, which is now defunct, allowed providers to bill up to 150 hours for transitional services and 150 hours for sustaining services per eligible Medicaid beneficiary. Meadows instructed her employees to maximize billings to this 150-hour cap, even if no services were rendered.

The fraudulent activities included billing for in-person hours allegedly provided by employees who were actually located in other states, such as Illinois, and even in other countries like the Philippines. These employees were paid only $6.00 per hour and received no benefits. Furthermore, Meadows submitted claims for services that could not have been provided because beneficiaries were hospitalized at the time.

Evidence presented at trial showed that Meadows billed as if her employees were working more than 20 hours per day, every day, for weeks. Medicaid beneficiaries testified that they received little to no services from Meadows' company, yet were informed that their available hours in the HSS Program had been exhausted.

The fraudulent scheme resulted in the HSS Program paying Meadows' company over $3.6 million between 2020 and 2025. These funds were deposited into accounts controlled exclusively by Meadows.

Assistant Attorney General Colin M. McDonald of the Justice Department’s National Fraud Enforcement Division stated, "The jury’s guilty verdict in this case sends a clear message that those who steal from programs meant to help our most vulnerable will be held accountable." U.

S. Attorney Daniel N. Rosen for the District of Minnesota added, "My office is committed to prosecuting those who steal from the American taxpayer."

The case was investigated by the FBI, the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG), and the IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI). Trial Attorneys Brant Cook and Emily Reeder-Ricchetti of the Fraud Division’s Health Care Fraud Section, with assistance from Health Care Fraud Section Trial Attorney Jody King and Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew Murphy for the District of Minnesota, prosecuted the case.

Meadows is scheduled to be sentenced at a later date and faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison on each count. A federal district court judge will determine her sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.