Alabama Medicaid Incompetency: State must repay Federal Childrens Health Insurance Program $88,197,498

Did you know? (No, you probably didn’t.)

In a report dated August 2013, the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS OIG) conducted a criminal and administrative investigation and found that Alabama claimed, and was paid millions in unallowable performance bonus payments under the Children’s Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act (CHIRPA).

This FRAUD was because of INCOMPETENCY in Alabama governance.

The HHS OIG found that the Alabama state agency overstated its FYs 2009 and 2010 current enrollment in its requests for bonus payments. The State agency overstated its current enrollments because, rather than reporting a monthly average enrollment of qualifying children, it reported to Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) the total number of all qualifying children that had been enrolled in its program for each year reviewed.

As a result, CMS overpaid Alabama $88,197,498 in bonus payments, and Alabama must repay that amount to the Federal Government.

Now… where’s the money going to come from? It hasn’t been put in escrow.

Will Governor Robert Bentley and the Legislature stiff the debt (which would then make them thieves)?

Do the people deserve better governance?

It’s definitely Food for Thought… but only if you’re one of the hungry.

https://oig.hhs.gov/oas/reports/region4/41208014.pdf

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For more information:

What is CHIRPA?
http://www.medicaid.gov/Medicaid-CHIP-Program-Information/By-Topics/Childrens-Health-Insurance-Program-CHIP/CHIPRA.html

The Alabama Medicaid Agency has a FaceBook page:
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Alabama-Medicaid-Agency/141645862533621