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September 11, 2013

LePage cheers boost in welfare prosecutions

Gov. Paul LePage said that the number of welfare fraud cases referred to state investigators have increased under his watch, which he lauded as a successful reform of the system.

The governor said in a statement Tuesday that 45 cases of fraud were referred to the Department of Health and Human Services’ fraud unit in 2012, compared with 32 in 2011. Ten cases were referred to the fraud unit in 2010. LePage said eight new investigators were hired in May for the unit, which was looking into 1,092 active fraud cases at the start of this year.

The governor said the number of people receiving benefits through the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program has also dropped by 41% since 2011. The Associated Press reported Democratic House Speaker Mark Eves said that decrease has only resulted in more families relying on municipal assistance.

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