Auditor finds flaws with state’s use of federal funds

Missouri Auditor Nicole Galloway’s office found multiple issues with federal funds used by four state agencies in fiscal 2015.

The annual audit examined nearly $12 billion in federal funds awarded via 303 separate programs used by 19 Missouri agencies and other state offices. Of those funds, the state departments of Social Services, Mental Health, Public Safety and Health and Senior Services distributed 91 percent, according to a news release.

Department of Social Services
The audit identified concerns over DSS methods used to prevent and detect inappropriate payments to child care providers.

Specifically, the report found weaknesses in the department’s issuance of financial assistance, according to the release.

In some cases, parents or guardians were approved for child care financial assistance when they didn’t work the required 20 hours per week for those subsidies or didn’t have proper records proving school attendance.

Auditors discovered Missouri HealthNet, a DSS division, failed to quickly remove inactive accounts in its Medicaid management system, which increased the risk of sensitive information being compromised. Four of 25 active system accounts belonged to individuals who hadn’t been employed or contracted by the department for at least eight months, according to the release.

Department of Mental Health
The department, according to the audit, failed to retain documentation on daily rates paid to some group homes for residential services.

The failure prevented auditors from figuring out whether funds paid to the homes were allowed under Medicaid guidelines, according to the release.

In total, auditors questioned payments of roughly $659,000.

Department of Public Safety
The audit took issue with the state agency’s use of federal Department of Homeland Security funds.

Federal law requires recipients of federal funds obtain independent audits. State auditors found no evidence steps had been taken to prove those audits were performed, according to the release.

The audit also found the department did not adequately keep track of whether recipients complied with purchasing requirements.

Department of Health and Senior Services
While the department took steps to correct previous audit recommendations, the latest audit found it still had a backlog of outstanding reassessments to be performed for recipients of Medicaid services.

The department had 2,700 reassessments due, which was 73 percent less than the auditor’s previous report, according to the release.