I wonder where the money went.
Posted on 06/16/2015 3:07:29 PM PDT by Signalman
The federal government cannot verify nearly $3 billion in subsidies distributed through Obamacare, putting significant taxpayer funding “at risk,” according to a new audit report.
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office of Inspector General (OIG) released an audit Tuesday finding that the agency did not have an internal system to ensure that subsidies went to the right enrollees, or in the correct amounts.
“[The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services] CMS’s internal controls did not effectively ensure the accuracy of nearly $2.8 billion in aggregate financial assistance payments made to insurance companies under the Affordable Care Act during the first four months that these payments were made,” the OIG said.
“CMS’s system of internal controls could not ensure that CMS made correct financial assistance payments,” they said.
The OIG reviewed subsidies paid to insurance companies between January and April 2014. The audit found that CMS did not have a process to “prevent or detect any possible substantial errors” in subsidy payments.
The OIG said the agency did not have a system to “ensure that financial assistance payments were made on behalf of confirmed enrollees and in the correct amounts.”
In addition, CMS relied too heavily on data from health insurance companies and had no system for state-based exchanges to “submit enrollee eligibility data for financial assistance payments.”
The government does “not plan to perform a timely reconciliation” of the $2.8 billion in subsidies.
The audit was released as the country awaits a Supreme Court ruling that could make all federal subsidies invalid, since the majority of states did not set up their own health insurance exchange.
(Excerpt) Read more at freebeacon.com ...
A few billion here, a few billion there, eventually it starts adding up to some real money.
I want to know when Congress authorized these payments. As far as I know, they haven’t, which would be extremely Unconstitutional. The ACA provided for the subsidies, but Congress holds the purse strings. When did Congress authorize these payments?
And yet if I understate my taxable income by $50, the IRS will detect it and come after me no matter how long it takes.
More fraud, theft and overall corruption.
Best check odumbo’s and his ilk, bank accounts.
I can remember when it only cost a buck or a beer to buy someones vote. Inflation has really taken over.
Ever notice that every post with the topic of ‘government’ also needs to topic box of ‘corruption’ checked off as well?
And voter ID will raise the price even more.
The US Gov’t is so big and bloated that billions just disappear. With grifters like Obama and Clinton, I suspect some of that disappearance is planned and directed.
I wonder where the money went.
It’s not like Pepsodent, where you’ll wonder where the yellow went.
Oh, who cares. $6 billion was lost with the GM bail out and that is considered to be one of Obama’s successes. So, what’s $3 billion when millions of people got cheaper insurance, er, I mean, healthcare.
I believe the Clintons struck a deal with Obama’s machine. Hillary agreed to support him and be his SOS and the Clintons would be allowed to steal all the money they could get their hands on.
But woe to the Little Man who makes a $10 error on his 1040.
If I got notice from the IRS saying I owed $50 in back taxes, I'd just pay it. It wouldn't be worth my time or effort to fight it. I certainly wouldn't be wasting my time or effort to fight $50 worth of income disputes.
January and April 2014 and missing $2.8 billion
What about the rest of the year?
My point is not whether or not I would pay it (of course I would).
My point is that the Government can keep track of hundreds of millions of taxpayers down to the penny, but they can shrug their (collective) shoulders and say “we can’t say for sure what happened to $2.8 billion.”
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