Hatch says dispute merits probe

10/28/2005

BY BILL SALISBURY
Pioneer Press

One state agency or another apparently will investigate a dispute between two Republican leaders over the treatment of autistic children.

At issue is whether the Minnesota Autism Center, a Minneapolis nonprofit agency, improperly provided government-subsidized treatment to some of the 88 children it serves.

Attorney General Mike Hatch said Thursday that either the state Human Services Department or his office would investigate whether anyone at the center committed billing fraud.

The chairman of the center’s board of directors is Ron Carey of Shoreview, the newly elected chairman of the Minnesota Republican Party. In February, board member and state Rep. Tim Wilkin, R-Eagan, and another member of the board filed a lawsuit against Carey and three other board members, all of whom are parents of autistic children receiving treatment through the center.

The suit accused the four board members of pressuring the center’s staff to provide treatment for their children that was “no longer medically necessary.” It alleged such treatment would constitute fraud against Medical Assistance, the state and federally funded program that paid for most of the children’s care.

Wilkin, an assistant House majority leader, and the other plaintiff, Lawrence Colson, dropped their suit in April after the two sides reached a mediated settlement, said Greg Bulinski, the attorney for Carey and the other defendants. Wilkin said he and Colson agreed to resign from the board and “not say anything disparaging” about the opposing side. He said the court records were sealed at the defendants’ request.

Wilkin added he felt “bound by the settlement not to discuss the particulars of the case.”

The court records were unsealed in September at the request of the Star Tribune newspaper, which published a story on the case Thursday.

Bulinski said the case revolved around whether the plaintiffs’ children should continue to receive intensive treatment after they reached school age. The lawsuit alleged that Carey and the other plaintiffs strongly objected when two psychologists at the center recommended discharging their school-age children into less intensive care programs. Bulinski said the settlement concluded that the more intensive treatment was appropriate and permitted by the Human Services Department.

The attorney general oversees nonprofit agencies in Minnesota, and state law requires the presiding judge to notify his office when a lawsuit involving a nonprofit is filed. Hatch said that when Hennepin County District Judge Tony Leung informed him that the autism center case might involve billing fraud, he advised the judge to notify the Human Services Department. Hatch said his staff monitored the case.

The judge did not contact Human Services, said department spokeswoman Patrice Vick. She said state law bars the agency from disclosing whether it is conducting an investigation in the case.

Hatch said he will ask Human Services whether it intends to investigate. If not, he said, his office would look into whether the autism center properly billed the state for services and seek reimbursement for any unlawful payments.

“But the fact that we might investigate doesn’t mean anything was done wrong,” he said.

As GOP chairman, Carey on Monday publicly criticized Hatch after he announced his candidacy for governor. Carey said he suspects the Democratic attorney general’s renewed interest in the case is politically motivated.

Hatch denied politics was involved. He said he decided to look into the matter in response to the news report and complaints from staff members at the autism center.