Eligibility for public programs not properly checked, state review finds

A state legislative auditor’s report found that the Minnesota Department of Human Services (DHS) failed to ensure the eligibility of participants in large public assistance programs and that it did not always perform timely inspections of child care centers.

The findings mirror those of other recent auditor reports and could fuel calls to reform the way state administrators verify eligibility for programs that together cost nearly $7 billion a year in federal money.

For more than a decade, the legislative auditor has reported flaws in the way the state determines who qualifies for Medical Assistance, which provides health insurance to about 1 million low-income and disabled Minnesotans, and other public assistance programs. For instance, last year the auditor found that 17 percent of 193 people enrolled in public health insurance programs were not eligible for the benefits they received.

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