The effort is part of the administration’s focus on eliminating fraud.
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has announced the launch of the Audit Enforcement and Risk Oversight initiative (AERO) through the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Financial Resources (ASFR). Non-federal entities, including states and local governments, that use one million or more in federal funds are subject to audits to verify proper usage of taxpayer dollars. A letter was sent to each state’s governor and treasurer to notify them of the consequences of chronic audit noncompliance, unresolved findings, and delinquent audit submissions.
“Taxpayers deserve to know that their dollars are being spent as intended. Years of audit reports documented serious vulnerabilities and failures in oversight, yet states and grantees faced little to no consequences,“ HHS Assistant Secretary for Financial Resources and Chief Financial Officer Gustav Chiarello said. “Following revelations of fraud in various states, we examined their audits more closely and found years of unresolved findings hiding in plain sight. Grantees who want to work with us to fix these problems will have a partner. Those that don’t may face consequences.”
The office will utilize AI analysis to review the last 5 years of audit history of states across the U.S. Noncompliance may result in the temporary withholding of payments, suspension of funds, or other legal actions.
As the Lord Leads, Pray with Us…
- For Assistant Secretary Chiarello as he oversees the auditing of state audit submissions.
- For HHS financial personnel as they utilize the AERO program to reduce fraud.
- For Secretary Kennedy and HHS officials as they seek to hold federal funding recipients accountable for their use of taxpayer dollars.
Sources: Department of Health and Human Services
