Financial Management Controls Over the National Hansen's Disease Program

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:

This final report provides our assessment of financial management controls relative to events surrounding a request to reprogram $1.4 million to the Hansen's Disease Program. The report points out that the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) improperly transferred $1.4 million of Hansen's Disease Program obligations to the National Health Service Corps. The transfers violated the requirement that an obligation be charged to the account for which it was incurred. The improper charges were reversed after the reprogramming request was approved. Among other things, recommendations call for HRSA and the Public Health Service to enhance staff awareness that justification for and review of obligations and deobligations be documented, that overobligations be timely reported as required, and to separate Hansen's disease activities from unrelated programs.

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