Minnesota officials have been given a deadline to submit information about child care providers and parents who are getting federal funds, or they could face losing this funding. According to a notice sent out to child care providers, they must provide this information to the federal government by January 9.
This notice follows the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ decision to freeze all child care payments to Minnesota amid fraud allegations involving some facilities. The Minnesota Department of Children, Youth and Families (DCYF) acknowledged in an email that they learned about the funding freeze simultaneously with the public, through social media.
In their message, DCYF addressed the concern raised by the funding freeze, stating the uncertainty it brings and emphasized that health care providers and families dependent on these funds should continue following the usual licensing and certification protocols. However, it wasn’t clear if any specific actions were required from the recipients of the email.
State officials mentioned they received formal communication about the funding freeze late Tuesday night, right after the announcement was made public. As part of the process, all states must meet additional certification requirements to unlock further child care funding.
This past Friday, DCYF noted that the state Office of the Inspector General conducted on-site inspections at nine child care centers implicated in a viral video by independent journalist Nick Shirley, who had raised allegations of fraud. In the video, he claimed to have visited several facilities that seemed inactive, while still receiving government subsidies.
DCYF stated investigations revealed that most of these centers were operating normally, with children present in all but one that was not yet open to families during his visit. Ongoing investigations are focused on four centers, and a total of 55 public investigations have been launched into providers funded by the Child Care Assistance Program.
At a recent news conference, Minnesota DCYF Commissioner Tikki Brown mentioned that initial inspections didn’t reveal any wrongdoing. She acknowledged the scrutiny these child care centers are under due to the video’s allegations, and while some methods used in the video raised questions, they take the concerns seriously.
