Finding Text
COVID-19 Provider Relief Fund (PRF) and American Rescue Plan (ARP) Rural Distribution
Federal Assistance Listing Number 93.498
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
Criteria or specific requirement: Activities Allowed or Unallowed and Allowable Costs/Cost Principles (Pub. L. No. 116-136, 134 Stat. 563 and Pub. L. No. 116-139, 134 Stat. 622 and 623) and Reporting (45 CFR 75.342).
Condition: The District included certain expenditures within the Period 4 reporting that were not eligible under HRSA guidelines.
Questioned costs: $1,754,432 – Calculated as the value of reported utility and insurance expenditures that were not related to the District’s prevention, preparation and/or response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Context: The Period 4 Provider Relief Fund (PRF) report was submitted and included utility and insurance expenditures. These expenditures were not directly related to the prevention, preparation, or response to the COVID-19 pandemic as required by HRSA guidelines.
Cause: Internal controls were not in place to ensure the District appropriately charged expenditures to this award as required by HRSA guidelines.
Effect: The District submitted expenditures under the PRF program that were not directly related to the prevention, preparation, or response to the COVID-19 pandemic as required by HRSA guidelines.
Identification as a repeat finding: N/A
Recommendation: Policies and procedures over federal grant reporting should be modified to ensure distributions are utilized for expenses directly related to the prevention, preparation, and response to coronavirus as required.
Views of responsible officials and planned corrective actions: See attached corrective action plan for the District’s response to finding.