Washington, Jan. 1 -- : The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is halting all federal child care payments to states beyond Minnesota amid an alleged large-scale fraud scandal.
Jim O'Neill, deputy secretary of Health and Human Services, announced on social media that the HHS is implementing new requirements for child care payments across the country.
From now on, payments handled by the Administration for Children and Families (ACF), a division of the HHS, will "require a justification and a receipt or photo evidence before we send money to a state," O'Neill said.
"We have turned off the money spigot, and we are finding the fraud," he said. "Funds will be released only when states prove they are being spent legitimately."T...