More Than $112 Million in Minnesota Medicaid Funds Permanently Denied by Federal Government; State Has 60 Days to Appeal
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has permanently denied Minnesota more than $112 million in Medicaid reimbursement for the quarter ending September 30, 2025. The decision was first reported by Minnesota Public Radio on November 10, 2026, with related coverage published November 11. The denied funds stem from a $259 million deferral CMS issued in February, mainly involving high-risk services provided from July through September 2025.
A deferral temporarily withholds federal funds; a disallowance is a permanent denial. Minnesota sued CMS and the US Department of Health and Human Services in March over the frozen funds. Dr. John Connolly, interim commissioner of the Minnesota Department of Human Services, told agency leaders the state had expected some amount to be disallowed, but the actual figure was about 1,000 times the amount initially flagged. The state is questioning how CMS sampled 330 claims out of more than 6 million high-risk claims that quarter and how it arrived at the final disallowance.
Since February, CMS has deferred $550 million in Minnesota Medicaid funds, with two further deferrals totaling $350 million for subsequent quarters still undecided. State officials said CMS has not responded to repeated requests for information; because the state has already paid out the money, it may need to recoup funds if the denial stands. The state has 60 days to appeal, and Connolly said it will seek more information before deciding its next steps.
Source: Becker's Hospital Review
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：明尼苏达州议会大厦。图片来源：Wikimedia Commons，McGhiever 摄，CC BY-SA 4.0。 Image: The Minnesota State Capitol. Source: Wikimedia Commons, photo by McGhiever, CC BY-SA 4.0.
