Latest news with #WIC
AsiaOne
15 hours ago
- AsiaOne
MOM probes alleged fake injury claim by Sumo Salad employee amid police probe into owner's death, Singapore News
The Ministry of Manpower (MOM) said on Monday (July 21) that it was looking into a fraudulent work injury claim made against EatGreen, the operator of eatery Sumo Salad. Separately, the police told AsiaOne that investigations are ongoing into the unnatural death of Jane Lee, the owner of Sumo Salad, also known as Sumo Well. Before her death on Saturday, Lee had made two Facebook posts about an employee who allegedly faked an injury to seek compensation against her eatery. In a post on Friday, she claimed that the employee 'staged' an incident — claiming to have slipped and fallen while taking the escalator to dispose rubbish. She added: 'On that day, she was supposed to leave work early, but she deliberately stayed back. It became clear to me that the accident was premeditated, likely as an attempt to file a false work injury claim. 'Their apparent strategy is to target small businesses. If they find one without proper insurance coverage, they instill fear and trying to extort money from the business owners.' In another Facebook post, Lee urged MOM and the police to investigate the case. 'I fear that I will not be the last victim, and these individuals may continue to exploit other unsuspecting small businesses in similar ways,' she said. MOM said that it was in communication with Lee and investigations are ongoing. The worker involved was covered under the Work Injury Compensation Act, according to the ministry. It is working with the insurer to assess the validity of the case. 'MOM will not hesitate to take parties found culpable for abusing the WIC system to task,' it said. 'Employers can approach MOM for help if they have concerns over fraudulent claims by their employees.' Under the Act, employees can make claims for work-related injuries without filing a civil suit. MOM in its website described it as a 'low-cost and quicker alternative' to common law for settling compensation claims. chingshijie@
Online Citizen
a day ago
- Online Citizen
MOM probes alleged false injury claim at Sumo Salad as police investigate owner's sudden death
SINGAPORE: The Singapore Ministry of Manpower (MOM) has announced it is investigating an alleged fraudulent work injury claim filed against EatGreen Pte. Ltd., the company operating the salad chain Sumo Salad, now known as Sumo Well. This development comes as the Singapore Police Force (SPF) separately investigates the unnatural death of Jane Lee, the eatery's owner, according to local Chinese news outlet 8world News. On 21 July 2025, MOM confirmed in a statement that its officers had been in communication with Lee before her passing. The ministry emphasised that investigations into the worker's claim are ongoing, with its officers coordinating with the relevant insurance provider to assess the validity of the reported workplace incident. Concerns raised over insurance and alleged extortion Jane Lee, who was in her 40s and a mother of two, died on 19 July 2025, two days after publishing detailed allegations on Facebook about what she described as a 'carefully orchestrated' attempt to defraud her business through a staged workplace accident. In her posts, Lee claimed that an employee, who has not been named publicly, stayed beyond her scheduled working hours on her last day of employment to create an opportunity for the alleged staged incident. According to Lee's account, the worker said she slipped and fell while using an escalator to dispose of rubbish. Lee described how she found this suspicious, given the employee's original plan to leave work early that day. She expressed her belief that the alleged accident had been premeditated to secure compensation through a work injury claim. In one of her final public statements, Lee wrote: 'On that day, she was supposed to leave work early, but she deliberately stayed back. It became clear to me that the accident was premeditated, likely as an attempt to file a false work injury claim.' Lee further alleged that this was not the worker's first attempt at such a claim and suspected the individual, along with her husband, had deliberately targeted small businesses like hers. Lee suggested the possibility that the couple, who are both from India, might have received assistance from a legal firm to exploit injury claims for compensation. MOM urges employers to seek assistance if they suspect fraudulent work injury claims MOM noted that the worker is covered under the Work Injury Compensation (WIC) Act and stated that it 'will not hesitate to take parties found culpable for abusing the WIC system to task'. It also encouraged employers who suspect fraudulent claims to approach the ministry for help. In its statement, MOM extended condolences to Lee's family. In her Facebook posts, Lee mentioned that she had documented evidence, including video footage, which she said contradicted the injury claim. She explained she had personally seen the employee move around freely, cooking and walking normally, only to observe the worker exaggerating her condition during medical appointments. Lee expressed significant concern about how such alleged schemes could harm small businesses, especially those with gaps in their insurance coverage. She warned that if bad actors found businesses without proper protection, they could exploit the fear of financial loss to extort settlements. 'If they find one without proper insurance coverage, they instil fear and try to extort money,' Lee claimed in her post, adding that the perpetrators could seek larger payouts by faking more severe injuries or disabilities. Lee's final messages included pleas for the authorities to investigate thoroughly, fearing that other small business owners could fall victim to similar schemes. She encouraged friends and the wider public to help share her story to raise awareness and protect other enterprises. Tributes have since poured in from Singapore's food and beverage community. Melvin Chew, owner of Jin Ji Teochew Braised Duck, posted a condolence message online, while veteran Singapore food critic K.F. Seetoh shared a personal tribute, remembering Lee's warmth and sincerity. Seetoh reflected on the emotional toll faced by small business owners in Singapore's high-pressure environment, though stopped short of linking this directly to Lee's passing. He urged the community to support one another in times of stress and uncertainty. Sumo Salad, rebranded as Sumo Well, operates at least two outlets in Singapore, including branches in Holland Village and Marina One.
Yahoo
14-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Cutting aid for children is unhelpful. Here's where to find abuse.
Justifications for deep cuts to health care, nutrition programs, and child care and other publicly financed services found both in the federal budget reconciliation legislation and in many of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) actions are that they are necessary to root out 'fraud and abuse.' Yet we could protect these essential services for children and families, and reduce government waste, if we had the will instead to go after fraud and abuse where it is most prevalent and costly. Instead, Congress and the president are headed in the opposite direction. As someone who has spent decades working on child and family policy, I've seen firsthand how well most public programs aimed at children actually work. Medicaid, SNAP, WIC, Head Start, IDEA and Title I, and child welfare services are among the most effective and accountable programs in government. Iowans know that public schools are the foundation for our future. Their benefits are clear and they are life-changing for millions of children and families. More: Medicaid kept my family's personal tragedy from becoming a financial one | Opinion Yet instead of investing in what works, the current federal budget proposals in budget reconciliation and through actions of DOGE are gutting these programs. Congress is moving to slash Medicaid and reduce nutrition assistance and doing great harm to the people receiving those services and to state governments given increased responsibility and reduced funding to pick up the pieces. If lawmakers are serious about cutting waste, here are some areas where they should look: Vendor fraud in health care: Each year, tens of billions of dollars are lost to fraudulent billing schemes in Medicare and Medicaid — not by families, but by providers. These include billing for services never delivered, double billing, upcoding, and phantom patients. The Department of Justice regularly recovers billions in fraud settlements, but enforcement remains under-resourced and has been subject to DOGE cuts that further limit its capacity. Strengthening audit systems and prosecuting fraud and investing in stater Medicaid fraud units would save real money without punishing children or families. Tax evasion by the wealthy and by powerful and profitable corporations: The IRS estimates more than $600 billion in taxes go uncollected each year, largely due to underreporting by high-income individuals and corporations. Increased enforcement capacity directed to this in the Biden administration was among the first places where DOGE and presidential orders cut funding and personnel. Restoring IRS enforcement capacity would generate hundreds of billions over a decade. Yet instead, additional tax breaks go to those who already aren't paying what they owe. Working-class families pay what they owe. The wealthy should, too. More: Opinion: Financing a 21st-century public infrastructure starts with valuing workers Corporate abuse and white-collar crime: From price-fixing to corporate tax shelters to wage theft, financial abuse in the private sector dwarfs anything found in safety net programs. Yet prosecutions of corporate crime are at historic lows. Going after these forms of white-collar theft not only protects public revenue; it restores faith that the system is not rigged against everyday Americans. Tackling fraud, waste and abuse requires government attention and response. We must combat 'crime in the streets,' but we also must combat 'crime in the suites' if we are to truly protect the American public. Simply put, the problem of 'fraud and abuse' is not with poor families and certainly not their children gaming the system. It's powerful actors exploiting it. It's political choices that allow this exploitation to continue and be less subject to control. Cutting programs that feed children, keep them healthy, and help them learn is not fiscal prudence. It's cruelty disguised as reform. It deepens public cynicism that government serves the rich and punishes working Americans who play by the rules and struggle to get ahead. Most important, it jeopardizes our very future. If we want a government that works, for all of us, we should start by protecting our most effective programs and cracking down on the real fraud. That's not just good economics. It's basic fairness. it's the kind of leadership working families want and deserve. Charles Bruner is a former Iowa state legislator who served from 1978 to 1990. He served as the founding director of the Child and Family Policy Center (now Common Good Iowa) from 1990 until 2015. This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Go after fraud and abuse where it actually exists | Opinion
Chicago Tribune
08-07-2025
- Health
- Chicago Tribune
Claire Decoteau and Kim D. Ricardo: Donald Trump's bill further erodes access to reproductive health care
The Supreme Court has dealt another blow to abortion access. It decided that states can ban Planned Parenthood from receiving Medicaid reimbursements because it provides abortions. Women between the ages of 19 to 44 account for nearly two-thirds of Medicaid beneficiaries. Prior to this decision, they were able to access reproductive health care services such as contraception, screenings for sexually transmitted infections and pregnancy testing in any state because of Medicaid and other federal programs. The entire Medicaid system is next on the chopping block now that the Senate has passed tax cuts for the mega-rich in President Donald Trump's One Big Beautiful Bill Act. The majority of Americans oppose Medicaid cuts because it helps the most vulnerable among us — individuals with limited incomes, middle-class older adults and those with disabilities — through a joint federal and state program that provides free or low-cost health care coverage for 71 million Americans. As researchers concerned with health care access for pregnant people, we interviewed 189 women over the last year to better understand barriers to abortion access since the Supreme Court overruled Roe v. Wade in 2022. Most of the women we interviewed live in conditions of sustained financial instability and, like most abortion seekers nationwide, already have children. These women are reliant on Medicaid or other forms of state assistance, such as the federal supplemental nutrition program for women, infants and children, known as WIC; school lunches; and housing vouchers. Our study confirms that Medicaid plays a critical role in guaranteeing access to reproductive health care and other essential services crucial to women's ability to sustain their families. Ten states that have tried to ban or restrict abortion also never expanded Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act. That means it's harder to get birth control in these states, and when women experience unwanted pregnancies, they can't get abortions. Maria, one of our study participants, faced this exact dilemma. Maria is a dental hygienist and a single mother of three. She explained: 'I've looked into getting birth control (at a clinic with a sliding scale) … but … it's still too high of a cost for me.' When she found out she was pregnant, she said, 'I honestly knew I could not afford to have a fourth child. I'm already tight as is.' If Congress passes the bill, more women will face the same catch-22. Maria ended up using abortion pills she received in the mail. When the federal government restricts social assistance programs, women won't be able to support the children they already have. Therefore, getting abortions for unwanted pregnancies isn't exactly a 'choice,' as sociologist Katrina Kimport explains. As Eva, a 22-year-old Latina single mom from Indiana, summarized, 'If you aren't going to provide certain health care benefits or … food stamps or … housing, you shouldn't have a say on if somebody should have a baby.' Abortion bans have reverberating effects. Pregnant people living in states with bans are twice as likely to die during childbirth as in states without bans. The risk is greatest for Black women — they are three times more likely to die during childbirth. Further, OB/GYNs don't want to train or practice in states with abortion bans, where their decisions around reproductive health care would be constantly under state surveillance. As a result, women in ban states already experience reduced reproductive health care access. Now that the bill has passed, women in all states will likely face reproductive risks because cuts also affect women living in states where abortion is legal. Illinois has used Medicaid to effect immediate decreases in direct patient costs and increases in abortion care by removing federal restrictions for abortion coverage and raising Medicaid reimbursement rates for abortion services by 20%. Medicaid coverage for abortions improves outcomes by allowing people to seek medical care earlier in pregnancy. Early access to abortion is positively associated with improved physical and mental health outcomes. When abortion care is not covered by Medicaid, people wait longer to get an appointment for care, and their pregnancies are more advanced and abortions more complicated and expensive. The bill would erase these state-led gains for women's reproductive health care while increasing federal spending. Barring Planned Parenthood from participating in Medicaid at a national level because it happens to provide abortions will raise federal spending by $300 million, the result of decreased contraception provision and a corollary increase in Medicaid-funded births. We know this because Texas implemented a similar plan in 2013 with these results. Our leaders should be working to increase access to health care, not rationing it out to only those who can afford it. Claire Decoteau is professor of sociology and Kim D. Ricardo is the Lucy Sprague professor in public interest at the University of Illinois at Chicago. Both are Society of Family Planning grantees.
Yahoo
26-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Ren Xianliang meets with ICANN president & CEO
BEIJING, June 26, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- A news report from On June 25, Ren Xianliang, secretary-general of the World Internet Conference (WIC), met with Kurtis Lindqvist, president and CEO of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), on the sidelines of the 2025 United Nations Internet Governance Forum (IGF), held in Lillestrom, Norway. Ren highlighted that ICANN is a globally influential organization with a strong reputation in the international internet community. Over the past decade, ICANN has been an active participant in the WIC Wuzhen Summit and related events, offering significant support to the WIC. Ren expressed his sincere appreciation for ICANN's contributions and the hope for deeper collaboration in the future. He welcomed ICANN's continued involvement in WIC's flagship initiatives, such as the Practice Cases of Jointly Building a Community with a Shared Future in Cyberspace, the World Internet Conference Awards for Pioneering Science and Technology, and the World Internet Conference Global Youth Leadership Program. Ren also extended an invitation to Lindqvist to attend major WIC events, including the Wuzhen Summit and the Asia-Pacific Summit. Lindqvist commended the WIC for its long-standing role in advancing internet development and fostering platforms for international exchange and cooperation. He emphasized the significance of the Open Forum hosted by the WIC during the IGF 2025, which focused on bridging the digital divide, particularly in light of the upcoming milestone in the "WSIS+20" process. Lindqvist expressed ICANN's interest in strengthening cooperation with the WIC to advance the multi-stakeholder governance model of the internet. He also invited Ren to attend important ICANN events. The meeting was attended by senior representatives from both the WIC Secretariat and ICANN. View original content to download multimedia: SOURCE
