HAWAII MEDICAID FRAUD CONTROL UNIT ADDRESSES 2014 AUDIT CONCERNS
News Release from Hawaii Attorney General, April 28, 2016
HONOLULU – Today the Office of the Inspector General of the United States Department of Health and Human Services commended the Hawaii Medicaid Fraud Control Unit for addressing six recommendations contained in an October 2014 review of the Hawaii anti-fraud program. The Hawaii Medicaid Fraud Control Unit is a unit of the State Department of the Attorney General.
Attorney General Doug Chin said, “Medicaid fraud takes tax dollars from patients who need coverage and gives it to criminals. The Hawaii Medicaid Fraud Control Unit took the auditor’s recommendations seriously and addressed them quickly, so that it could continue to improve its services to the public.”
On March 23, 2016, the Unit submitted its Final Management Report in response to a 2014 audit which examined the Unit’s activities between 2010 and 2013. The 2014 audit cited shortcomings in the Unit and recommended six actions to address them. Today’s letter from the Inspector General notes that with the exception of making a reimbursement for a temporary investigator who left the Unit after working for only 8 months, all of the Inspector General’s recommendations from the audit are now closed. With respect to the temporary investigator, the Unit expects to reimburse the Federal government within the next month.
The Hawaii Medicaid Fraud Control Unit investigates and prosecutes provider fraud involving medical assistance programs, as well as patient abuse and neglect statewide. For more help regarding alleged abuse or fraud, call the Unit at (808) 586-1058. You can learn more about the Unit and about Medicaid Fraud by visiting the Unit’s website: http://ag.hawaii.gov/cjd/medicaid-fraud-control-unit/.
A copy of the letter from the Office of the Inspector General to the Hawaii Medicaid Fraud Control Unit dated today is attached.
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PDF: US HHS IG Letter
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