Finding Text
US Department of Health and Human Services
Passed through the NC Department of Health and Human Services
Program Name: Medical Assistance Program
CFDA #: 93.778
Finding: 2022-012 Inadequate Request for Information
SIGNIFICANT DEFICIENCY
Eligibility
Criteria: In accordance with 42 CFR 435, documentation must be obtained as needed to determine if a recipient meets specific standards, and documentation must be maintained to support eligibility determinations. Electronic matches are required at applications and redeterminations.
Condition: There were 7 errors discovered during our procedures that inadequate information was requested at applications and/or redeterminations.
Questioned Costs: There was no known affect to eligibility and there were no known questioned costs.
Context: We examined 60 cases from of a total of 43,722 Medicaid claims from the Medicaid beneficiary report provided by NC Department of Health and Human Services to re-determine eligibility. These findings are being reported with the financial statement audit as it relates to Medicaid administrative cost compliance audit.
Identification of a Effect: For those certifications/re-certifications there was a chance that information was not properly documented and reconciled to North Carolina Families Accessing Services through Technology (NC FAST) and a participant could have been approved for benefits for which they were not eligible.
Identification of a repeat finding: This is a repeat finding from the immediate previous audit, 2021-012.
Cause: Ineffective record keeping and ineffective case review process, incomplete documentation, and incorrect application of rules for purposes of determining eligibility.
Recommendation: Files should be reviewed internally to ensure proper documentation is in place for eligibility. Workers should be retrained on what files should contain and the importance of complete and accurate record keeping. We recommend that all files include online verifications, documented resources and income and those amounts agree to information in NC FAST. The results found or documentation made in case notes should clearly indicate what actions were performed and the results of those actions.
Views of responsible officials: The county agrees with the finding. Please refer to the corrective action plan for details.