President Donald Trump’s Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced on Monday that it is closing a Biden-era loophole that required states to pay childcare centers before verifying attendance.
The department is initiating the change as fallout from allegations of widespread fraud at Minnesota Somali-run daycare centers continues. According to HHS, the Biden administration’s rule required states to base payments to childcare centers on enrollment instead of verified attendance, and payment was provided in advance of services.
“Paying providers upfront based on paper enrollment instead of actual attendance invites abuse,” HHS Deputy Secretary Jim O’Neill said in a statement. “In Minnesota, we’ve seen credible and widespread allegations of fraudulent daycare providers who were not caring for children at all. The reforms we are enacting will make fraud harder to perpetrate.”
Hellbound and Down 