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The US Department of Health and Human Services says it is freezing all child care payments to the state of Minnesota amid reports of fraud. Deputy Secretary Jim O’Neill said in a post on X that all child care payments to the state are now frozen, with steps taken Tuesday against what he called the “blatant fraud that appears to be rampant in Minnesota and across the country.”
The post went on to say that all ACF payments across America will require a justification and a receipt or photo evidence before being sent, and that O’Neill has demanded an audit of the centers in Minnesota by Governor Walz.
A fraud-reporting hotline and email address has also been established. The news comes after a video published by independent journalist Nick Shirley appears to show abandoned day cares in Minnesota being subsidized by taxpayer money.
Walz’s office says has he’s taken many steps to address the problem and supports criminal prosecutions. Walz also says President Trump is targeting the state’s Somali community with the investigation.
