Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. told a House committee that the cost of hospice fraud in Los Angeles could reach $5,000,000. Independent journalist Nick Shirley, who previously investigated fraudulent day care centers run by Somali migrants, filmed the alleged fraud during a hearing. Republican Texas Rep. Beth Van Duyne asked Kennedy about the fraud, which he could guess was the reason for the discrepancy. Kennedy responded by saying that he had previously asked about the waste, fraud, and abuse of over 100 different licenses for hospices. The task force has since suspended federal funding to nearly 450 hospices suspected of fraud in the Los Angeles area.