WTAS: HHS to Close Biden-Era Loophole That Let States Pay Child Care Providers Without Counting Attendance

On January 5, 2026, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) through its Administration for Children and Families is rescinding a series of Biden-era child care rules that required states to pay providers before verifying any attendance and before care was delivered. The change will roll back provisions in the 2024 Child Care and Development Fund rule that weakened oversight and increased the risk of waste, fraud and abuse in federally-funded state child care — including programs now under investigation in Minnesota.

Headlines
Members of Congress
Organizations
Influencers

Headlines:

• NY Post: Trump’s HHS rescinds Biden rule that gave child care centers funding without verifying attendance
• Epoch Times: HHS Repeals Biden-era Rules on Paying Child Care Providers
• The Washington Times: HHS targets Biden-era rule that funds child-care centers before verifying attendance
• The Daily Wire: Trump Admin Reverses Biden ‘Loophole’ That Invited Fraud, ‘Abuse’ At Daycares
• Newsmax: HHS Ends Biden-Era Child Care 'Pay-First' Rule
• Breitbart: HHS: Biden-Era Loophole “Invited Abuse,” Funneled Billions to Childcare Centers Without Verifying Attendance
• Breitbart: Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Closes Biden-Era Childcare Provider Loopholes that Enabled Fraud
• Federal Newswire: HHS reverses Biden-era advance payment rules for child care providers
• The Gateway Pundit: HHS ENDS Biden’s Massive Child Care FRAUD Scheme That Let States Pay Providers Without Verifying Attendance
• RedState: New: HHS Axes Insane Biden Policy That Paid Daycare Centers Without Verifying Attendance
• DailyFly: HHS Rescinds Child Care Payment Rules Tied to Enrollment
• Fox 41 Yakima: What to know about the Trump administration’s latest moves on child care funding 

Members of Congress:

• Sen. Joni Ernst via X: “The fact that *verifying attendance* was not required before handing over millions to child care centers tells you how easy it is for fraudsters to rob taxpayers blind. I’ll continue investigating to ensure that every bad actor is held accountable, and we close every loophole.”
• Rep. Buddy Carter via X: “Minnesota’s fraud scandal, costing billions of dollars, didn’t happen by accident — it happened on Tim Walz’s watch. When Socialist Democrats are put in leadership, corruption flourishes and taxpayers pay the price. Hardworking Georgians deserve better than Senator Ossoff, who wants to Minnesota our Georgia.” 

Organizations:

• Thriving Families CA Foundation (@TFC_advocacy) via X: “On Jan. 5, 2025, HHS released a proposed rule affecting the Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF), which supports child care assistance in California.”
• MAHA Action (@MAHA_Action) via X: “RFK Jr. and HHS are closing a Biden-era loophole that let states pay child care providers without verifying attendance. This system made fraud inevitable, and we’ve already seen it exposed in programs around the country. Working families deserve their money going to real services, not wasted. By ending this loophole, HHS is making sure taxpayer dollars reach the families they were meant to serve.” 

Influencers:

• Karoline Leavitt (White House Press Secretary) via X: “Biden admin gave child care centers billions without verifying attendance — allowing ‘loopholes and fraud’”
• Eric Daugherty (Chief Content Officer of Right Line News) via X: “BREAKING: In a huge move, HHS Sec. Bobby Kennedy just CLOSED a loophole that allowed Somali fraudsters to get taxpayer dollars at child cares WITHOUT counting attendance The Biden-era rules were just abolished. Good. THIS IS COMMON SENSE. - States may require payment based on verified attendance rather than enrollment alone. - States may again pay providers after care is delivered. - States are no longer steered toward contracts over parent-directed vouchers, restoring parental choice. RFK JR: “Loopholes and fraud diverted that money to bad actors instead. Today, we are correcting that failure and returning these funds to the working families they were meant to serve.” Child care is being DOGE’d!”
• Josh Christenson (New York Post DC Bureau Chief) via X: “Scoop: @HHSGov is moving to scrap provisions in a Biden administration federal rule that didn't require states to verify attendance at child care centers”
• Patrick Brown (Fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center) via X: “Another example of how progressives in the Biden WH pushing the administrative envelope - in this case, switching from billing based on actual attendance to billing for 'seats', and ignoring concerns from conservatives (like, uh, me) - end up coming back to bite them”
• John R. Lott Jr. (President of Crime Prevention Research Center) via X: “And there is a question about why there is so much fraud in government programs.”
• Brian Doherty (@BDOH) via X: “WHY was the US government doling out billions of taxpayer money to childcare centers without verifying attendance at these centers?”