Senator Roger Victory (R-Hudsonville) requested the Office of the Auditor General to review Michigan Medicaid spending. According to the Senator, as program spending has continued to rise, there have been issues of fraudulent claims and improper payments.
“This issue affects every Michigan taxpayer, with Medicaid accounting for roughly one-third of all state spending. Moreover, it is particularly important for the more than 2.5 million who are entitled to benefits to ensure they have access to the essential, covered care that the program is designed to offer,” said Senator Victory.
Senator Victory asked for the following information:
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- Systems and processes in place to ensure Medicaid beneficiaries are eligible and receiving appropriate services.
- Vulnerabilities that could lead to improper payments.
- Third-party service providers and their ability to demonstrate reimbursed services were provided to eligible recipients.
- Opportunities to streamline program administration.
- Total cost of coverage per beneficiary and what portion is administrative costs versus benefit costs.
- Processes in place to prevent, detect, and address instances of waste, fraud, and abuse.
The Office of the Auditor General:
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- Originally created in 1836 as an elected office.
- Currently, the Auditor General is appointed by a majority vote of the legislature to serve an eight-year term.
- The office has constitutional authority to conduct post-financial and performance audits of all branches, departments, offices, boards, authorities, and other institutions.
- The resulting reports are public documents.
