Minneapolis, MN
Minneapolis therapy clinic sues over cyberattack at UnitedHealth subsidiary
A Minneapolis clinic is the latest to sue a UnitedHealth Group subsidiary over the fallout from its February cyberattack.
Twin Cities Counseling says it hasn’t been able to submit payment claims for more than 100 appointments — resulting in thousands of dollars in missing reimbursements — since UnitedHealth Group took down the claims processing system at its Change Healthcare division to contain the IT threat.
Because of the billing mess, Twin Cities Counseling couldn’t cover its payroll in March, the lawsuit says. Additionally, recently hired therapy providers at the clinic haven’t been able to transition their patients to the practice.
The complaint, which was filed Wednesday as a class action in the U.S. District Court for Minnesota, says the Change Healthcare outage has meant that many health care providers across the country have lost their primary, and in some cases their only, system for obtaining payments from health insurers.
“Twin Cities Counseling LLC can no longer verify prospective clients’ insurance benefits,” states the lawsuit, which only names Change Healthcare as a defendant. “Without access to the Change platform, plaintiff has no way of knowing if a referrals’s insurance is active, what the plan’s copayment and deductible amounts are, or even whether the clinic’s providers are in network for the plan.
“This lack of information has forced plaintiff to choose between taking on patients blindly — with the risk of either foregoing future payment or strapping the patient with the bill — or declining referrals and appointment requests to avoid that risk,” according to the complaint. “Plaintiff has chosen the latter option out of an abundance of caution, and thus has lost valuable new business due to the data breach.”
Responding to the lawsuit, Minnetonka-based UnitedHealth Group said Thursday in a statement: “We are focused on the investigation and recovery of Change Healthcare’s operations.”
Earlier this month, the company asked that lawsuits related to the cyberattack be consolidated at a federal court in Nashville, where Change Healthcare is based. At the time, UnitedHealth Group said 24 class action lawsuits related to the disruption had been filed between March 1 and April 2.
“Change took prompt action to contain the incident, and defendants have invested extraordinary efforts to avoid harmful effects to individuals, providers and payers as a result of the incident,” the company said in a court filing earlier this month. “Numerous Change systems are back online, and others will be restored in the coming days and weeks.”
After disclosing the cyberattack in late February, UnitedHealth Group was hit in early March by federal class action lawsuits filed in Minnesota by patients struggling to obtain medications at pharmacies because of the IT system shutdown.
Mental health providers have been among those most vocal in Minnesota talking about disruptions to their businesses, because several clinics used an electronic health record called TherapyNotes that relied heavily on the data clearinghouse at Change Healthcare.
Twin Cities Counseling uses TherapyNotes, as well, the lawsuit says. The practice and owner Nick Ross have not received payments for services provided since the cyberattack, according to the complaint, and 16 claims that were in process at the time, totaling just over $3,500, are now “in limbo.”
“Plaintiff cannot submit them to a new clearinghouse, as doing so would risk double-billing insurers, yet Change cannot process the claims,” the complaint states. “As a result of these claims being submitted but not paid, they appear on patient’s account portals as outstanding payments.
“After one patient paid the full balance shown in her account, Mr. Ross spent time and effort issuing the patient a full refund, and explaining to other patients that they do not need to pay these balances even though they appear on their accounts.”
In February, the practice hired two additional providers who collectively see nearly 40 patients per week. But because they can’t bill for clients through the new practice, “they have continued to see their clients through other service providers, causing Twin Cities Counseling LLC to lose revenue.”
TherapyNotes is in the process of switching to a new clearinghouse, the lawsuit says. That means the clinic will need to spend time learning and implementing the new system and re-enrolling with payers while not receiving payment.
“Plaintiff has struggled to keep its accounting practices intact in light of Change’s failures,” the lawsuit says. “Plaintiff is unable to assign payments to specific clients, track client personal balances in real time … [and] fears tax ramifications because of the accounting difficulties that would not have resulted but for the data breach.”
Star Tribune staff writer Mike Hughlett contributed to this story.
Food insecurity in Minnesota: SNAP cuts and rising demand
Minnesota food shelves are facing growing pressure as potential federal SNAP cuts, rising grocery prices and increased demand strain already limited resources. Some providers also report impacts tied to recent immigration enforcement activity, with families hesitant to seek assistance. Wendy Behm of ACBC Food Shelf joins to discuss how organizations are responding, efforts to combat food insecurity across the state, and what’s at stake during the current legislative session. Learn more at acbcfoodshelf.com.
MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) – A Minneapolis grocery store owner is facing a felony charge after investigators say he trafficked more than $1.1 million in SNAP benefits using other people’s EBT cards.
SNAP benefits trafficking investigation leads to felony charge
What we know:
According to criminal charges filed in Hennepin County Court, Abdidwahid Mohamed, owner of Minnesota Food Grocery LLC, is accused of using EBT cards registered to other people to purchase items like energy drinks and baby formula at Sam’s Club and Costco between March 8, 2021 and August 10, 2021. The goods were then resold at his store.
The complaint states law enforcement says they watched Mohamed make the purchases and tracked him returning directly to his store with the items. Video surveillance and GPS data confirmed the trips, and investigators say many of the EBT cardholders were out of the country or denied shopping at the stores Mohamed visited.
The complaint states, “Mohamed received $1,141,082 in EBT payments” during the period in question. The federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) is designed to help low-income households buy food, with benefits issued through EBT cards that work like debit cards.
Wal-Mart team sparks investigation
The backstory:
The investigation began when Wal-Mart’s Global Investigation Team flagged suspicious EBT transactions at Sam’s Club locations in Minneapolis. The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) was contacted in May 2021, and surveillance of Mohamed followed.
The complaint states on Aug. 10, 2021, law enforcement executed search warrants at Mohamed’s store and vehicles. He was arrested at a Sam’s Club in Bloomington with an EBT card and a handwritten note containing a PIN number. Interviews with more than two dozen EBT cardholders revealed that many claimed their cards were lost or had never been used at the stores in question.
One woman admitted she had not shopped at Minnesota Food Grocery for more than a year-and-a-half after agreeing to let Mohamed use her EBT card.
The complaint states the offense “involved a high degree of sophistication or planning or occurred over a lengthy period of time.”
What’s next:
If convicted, Mohamed faces up to 20 years in prison or a $100,000 fine.
The Source: Information from a criminal complaint filed in Hennepin County District Court.
Minneapolis, MN
Truck driver dead after crash sends Metro Transit bus into home in south Minneapolis
It happened early Monday morning in Minneapolis.
One person is dead and another is hospitalized after an early-morning crash in south Minneapolis on Monday that sent a Metro Transit bus into a home.
It happened at around 4 a.m. at 10th Avenue South and East 38th Street, just a few blocks east of George Floyd Square.
A spokesperson for Metro Transit police tells 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS that a truck was speeding down 10th Avenue when it hit the back of the bus, ripping a tire off the bus and sending it into the front of a home.
The driver of that truck died, according to Metro Transit police, while the driver of the bus was taken to a hospital but is expected to be OK.
Officials say nobody besides the driver was on the bus at the time, and the home the bus hit was also empty at the time.
Investigators are still at the scene, working to clean up all of the debris and determine exactly what led up to the crash.
5 EYEWITNESS NEWS is at the scene and working to learn more. Download the KSTP app and follow 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS on social media for the latest updates.
Minneapolis, MN
Atlanta Dream survive thriller in Minneapolis, edge Lynx 91-90 to open 2026 WNBA season
The Atlanta Dream trailed by double digits, fought back twice and still needed Angel Reese’s game-saving block in the final seconds to survive.
Atlanta opened the 2026 WNBA season with a 91-90 victory over the Minnesota Lynx on Saturday night, powered by Allisha Gray’s 24 points, Te-Hina Paopao’s pull-up jumper with 12 seconds remaining, and a performance that left little doubt about what this team intends to do this season.
Reese’s block on Emese Hof’s layup attempt in the closing seconds sealed one of the most dramatic opening-night wins before 10,821 fans at Target Center.
When Minnesota pushed its advantage to 13 points in the second quarter and the Dream looked like they were in serious trouble, Allisha Gray took over. The veteran guard finished with a game-high 24 points on 7-of-18 shooting, going a near-perfect 9-of-11 from the free throw line to go along with eight rebounds, three assists and two steals.
Gray’s ability to get to the line and convert kept Atlanta within striking distance throughout a game that could have spiraled out of control multiple times. She scored 11 points in the third quarter alone as the Dream chipped away at Minnesota’s lead.
Rhyne Howard was equally important on both ends, finishing with 15 points, five assists and three steals. Jordin Canada ran the offense efficiently with 12 points and six assists, and Paopao added six points and four assists in a composed performance off the bench.
With Atlanta trailing 85-87 and the clock winding down, Naz Hillmon stepped back and drained a 22-foot three-pointer with 2:44 left to tie the game and silence the fans in the Target Center. It was the shot of the night, and arguably the play that won Atlanta the game.
Hillmon finished with 15 points on an efficient 6-of-10 from the field, adding seven rebounds in 33 minutes. She was the Dream’s most reliable scorer off the bench and delivered her best basketball when Atlanta needed it most.
Rookie Madina Okot also impressed in her WNBA debut, scoring eight points on 3-of-6 shooting with four rebounds in just 10 minutes, showing the poise and physicality that earned her a roster spot out of training camp.
Angel Reese’s first game in a Dream uniform was complicated. She shot 4-of-11 from the field, committed five turnovers and picked up a first-quarter technical foul that gifted Minnesota a free point. At one point in the first half, she missed three consecutive shots on the same possession.
But Reese also grabbed 14 rebounds, nine on the offensive glass, blocked three shots, came up with two steals, and made the most important play of the game when it mattered most. Her block on Hof’s layup in the final seconds was the kind of athletic, instinctive play that changes games and defines seasons.
That is the player Atlanta acquired this offseason. On opening night, in the most pressure-packed moment of the game, she showed exactly why.
Minnesota had every opportunity to win this game and couldn’t finish it. Olivia Miles finished with 21 points on 6-of-14 shooting and eight assists to go along with eight free throws made. Kayla McBride scored 20 points and hit the go-ahead three-pointer with 1:11 left that looked like it might be the dagger.
Courtney Williams added 14 points and six assists, and the Lynx shot 50 percent from the field, a number that should have been good enough to win.
But 15 turnovers and an inability to execute in the game’s final minute proved too costly. Minnesota had chances to put Atlanta away in the fourth quarter and couldn’t. The Dream made them pay every time.
Atlanta continues its opening road trip Tuesday against the Dallas Wings before returning home for the May 17 opener against the defending champion Las Vegas Aces at State Farm Arena. Minnesota hosts Atlanta again on May 27.
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