Attorney General Brenna Bird Announces Major Grant Award in Fight Against Medicaid Fraud
DES MOINES— Attorney General Brenna Bird announced today her office has been awarded an almost $4 million grant from the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) to work together to aggressively target fraud and major financial crimes.
This grant will allow the Iowa Attorney General’s Office to hire and assign a total of five qualified prosecutors. These new prosecutors will serve as Special Assistant United States Attorneys (SAUSAs) within United States Attorney’s Offices, allocated strategically across the state with three attorneys dedicated to the Des Moines-based Southern District of Iowa and two attorneys dedicated to the Cedar Rapids-based Northern District of Iowa.
"No level of fraud in our state is acceptable, which is why I applied for this grant. This award, the first of its kind for Iowa, shows that protecting Iowans from Medicaid fraud is a top priority for this administration and our state,” said Attorney General Bird. “I’m grateful for the cooperation of our federal partners. This crucial funding gives us five specialized attorneys who can prosecute across Iowa and hold fraudsters accountable for stealing hard-earned taxpayer dollars."
“The U.S. Department of Justice is proud to partner with Iowa for this important initiative,” said U.S. Associate Attorney General Stanley E. Woodward, Jr. “Upholding the rule of law and fighting fraud remains at the forefront of President Trump’s Administration and these federal funds will go directly towards protecting Iowans and supporting the fight against bad actors.”
“The fraud epidemic demands an all-hands-on-deck response from our state and federal partners,” said Assistant Attorney General Colin M. McDonald of the National Fraud Enforcement Division. “We thank Attorney General Bird for being among the first in the nation to join our Special Attorneys Grant Program, which will substantially enhance our ability to uncover fraud, hold wrongdoers accountable, and protect taxpayer dollars.”
“Medicaid fraud undermines the integrity of a program that Iowans rely on and siphons resources away from those it is intended to serve,” said U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Iowa David C. Waterman. “This partnership brings together federal and state expertise to uncover sophisticated fraud schemes and pursue those who exploit the Medicaid program for personal gain. We are proud to work alongside Iowa Attorney General Bird and her team to safeguard public funds and ensure those who defraud these programs face serious consequences.”
“Federal programs exist to solve federal programs, not to get raided like a refrigerator in a house full of teenaged boys” said Leif Olson, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Iowa. “Every dollar that a criminal yanks from federal spending is a dollar that should be protecting our national interest or getting returned to the taxpayers. Thanks to this partnership with Attorney General Bird’s office, federal and state prosecutors have more resources to make scammers pay the price for illegally sucking money out of federal programs.”
While these specialized prosecutors will focus heavily on combating Medicaid and public benefit fraud, their federal mandate under this grant also empowers them to investigate and prosecute drug and human trafficking crimes. The project period for this federal initiative spans three years, commencing on June 1, 2026, and running through May 31, 2029.
Read grant award here.
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For More Information:
Contact: Jen Green | jen.green@ag.iowa.gov
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