
A federal court rejected Minnesota’s attempt to restart Medicaid funding that the Trump administration had halted over concerns people are stealing the money, with the judge saying even the state has acknowledged it has a “serious fraud problem.”
Judge Eric Tostrud, a Trump appointee, said Minnesota may still prevail later in the case, but for now the feds are on relatively solid legal footing in deferring more than $250 million in Medicaid money to prod the state to combat fraud.
“Though Minnesota credibly complains that the federal government’s deferral is historically unprecedented in its size and timing, I conclude on this record that the deferral likely complies with the controlling federal regulations,” the judge wrote.
The ruling is a striking win for President Trump, who had ordered his administration to take steps to punish Minnesota over a series of public benefit scandals, particularly involving the Minneapolis area’s large Somali community.
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2026/apr/6/judge-finds-minnesota-fraud-problem-refuses-order-trump-restart/