The Legislature’s first committee deadline of the year passed on March 15. Thousands of bills are introduced each year, but only a handful of these bills have enough support to eventually become law. Committee deadlines help legislators narrow our focus to only those bills that have enough support to continue through the process. Committee deadline weeks are busy, and it’s not unusual for meetings to be held late into the night in order to get our work done.
Sincerely,
Child Care Assistance Fraud
This week, the Office of the Legislative Auditor released the findings of their investigation into Child Care Assistance (CCAP) Fraud. The investigation was prompted by a whistleblower who alleged that the amount of fraud topped $100 million each year, and that some of the money was being obtained by terrorists overseas.
You should read the entire report, but there are a few things worth noting:
- According to the auditor’s report, the investigators in charge of the CCAP program believe that the level of fraud is exactly what the whistleblower alleged last year. The manager of CCAP’s Investigations Unit said fraud is “pervasive.”
- The auditor could not reach a reliable estimate about the level of fraud, but they believe it is higher than what they were able to prove.
- In an email obtained by the auditor, the Supervisor and Manager of the CCAP Fraud Investigation Unit said the overall fraud rate is at least 50% of the $217 million paid to child care centers in 2017.
- The report found “significant distrust” between the Office of the Inspector General and the CCAP investigations unit. CCAP investigators told the auditor they believed Ham was trying to undermine their work.
The report makes it clear that there needs to be substantial changes at the Department of Human Services. The Senate has already begun hearing bills to bring transparency and accountability to the Child Care Assistance Program. I will keep you informed on the progress of those bills as session continues.
Making health insurance more affordable
This week the Senate voted to extend a program that has successfully lowered health insurance premiums over the last two years. The program, called reinsurance, helps mitigate some of the most expensive claims that insurers face. As you remember, MNsure led to years of skyrocketing premiums. Things got so bad that the Commissioner of Commerce said Minnesota’s individual health insurance market was in a state of emergency. The Senate Majority passed reinsurance back in 2017, and the market almost immediately stabilized. In fact, it has been so successful that both local media and national news outlets have lauded the program, and other states have implemented similar models.
We still have a lot more work to do to lower costs for everyone, improve transparency, and eliminate waste. But those are complex problems, and families need some relief in the meantime. Reinsurance is not a long-term solution, but extending the program is the right thing to do.
If you have any questions about these issues, please feel free to contact me any time. My phone number is 651-296-5981, and my email is sen.bruce.anderson@senate.mn.