Manderson
Manderson, WY · Municipal
NonStop Local Billings
Licensed counselor in Billings sentenced for Medicaid fraud
HELENA, Mont. – A licensed professional counselor in Billings was sentenced to spend three years in prison and repay $600,000 for years of fraudulent Medicaid bills related to sessions that “did not occur,” the Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen announced. A judge found her guilty on October 22 and sentenced her for “Medicaid fraud” and “making a false claim to a public agency.” Her crimes were connected to actions between January 2022 and September 2025, when she billed Medicaid for sessions with “patients she never treated and for sessions that did not occur,” Knudsen wrote in a press release about her sentencing. She was sentenced to pay the state $603,719.66 in restitution and serve a 10-year suspended sentence after completing her three-year prison term at the Montana Women’s Prison. She is also excluded from billing any federal health insurance program for the length of the sentence.
NonStop Local Missoula
Q2 News
Longer lines possible at Montana polls due to statewide ballot printing issue
NonStop Local Billings
Montana's first diverging diamond interchange coming to Johnson Lane in Lockwood
BILLINGS, Mont. — Drivers in the Billings area will see a major change to traffic patterns in Lockwood as the Montana Department of Transportation prepares to build Montana’s first diverging diamond interchange at Johnson Lane. The new design is intended to improve traffic flow around the Interstate 90 interchange, where congestion and backups have been an ongoing concern. Utility relocation work is already underway ahead of major construction expected to begin in spring 2027. A diverging diamond interchange temporarily moves traffic to the left side of the road as drivers travel through the interchange. The design reduces the number of places where vehicles cross paths, allowing traffic to move more efficiently between local roads and the interstate. MDT Engineering Project Manager Shane Johnson said the agency studied several options before selecting the design for Johnson Lane. “After some extensive studies, it was determined that this would be a good candidate for Montana’s first DDI. And it’s due to the congestion that’s been happening here for the last several years,” Johnson said. The goal is to reduce traffic backups on the interchange ramps, particularly those that can extend onto I-90. “The biggest benefit is traffic queuing and backup up on the