Washington, D.C., January 5, 2026 — Last week, an ill-informed YouTube “influencer” accused child care centers run by Somali providers in Minnesota of fraud. In response to these accusations and without any further investigation, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) took immediate actions to freeze federal child care funding for Minnesota, to implement a “Defend the Spend” effort for all states, and to establish a fraud reporting website and hotline. Since then, numerous “influencers” have made similar claims against child care providers in other states.  

Stephanie Schmit, Director of Child Care and Early Education at the Center for Law and Social Policy, said, “It is hard to see this as anything but politically motivated attacks on child care providers and reactions that will punish children and families nationwide. Child care providers of diverse racial, ethnic, and cultural backgrounds offer critical, culturally competent care that meets the unique needs of the children and families in their communities across the country.” 

The Child Care and Development Fund is a lifeline for families with low incomes to access stable and reliable child care so they can go to work. Disruptions to this essential funding will only harm children, families, and providers. 

While HHS has not yet released information about how it will implement “Defend the Spend,” the very brief implementation of the program in April resulted in delayed payments to states. This created barriers for families because providers, who operate on razor-thin margins, depend on timely payments from the states to run their programs. Because additional information has not yet been released, there is significant confusion and worry about the impact that this might have.

“Child care providers and state child care agency staff already put a lot of effort and energy into reporting how they spend their resources. Adding further reporting requirements to their overburdened workload will take their time and attention away from where it should be–focused on providing the best care possible for children,” Schmit said.

It is troubling that a federal agency would make such a destabilizing decision based on the unfounded claims of an “influencer” with a long history of videos that prioritize shock over facts. HHS should consider the actual impacts of any requirements on children, families, and providers, and make decisions accordingly.