A Report on Health and Human Services Commission Contracts
October 2016
Report Number 17-005
Overall Conclusion
Texas Government Code, Section 321.013(k), requires that, in devising its audit plan, the State Auditor's Office shall consider performing audits of Health and Human Services Commission (Commission) contracts that exceed $100 million in annual value, including contracts between the Commission and managed care organizations. Pursuant to that requirement, the State Auditor's Office compiled a list of each Commission contract with a total value exceeding $100 million, as well as all contracts for managed care services.
Based on unaudited information from the Commission's Health and Human Services Contract Administration and Tracking System (HCATS), the State Auditor's Office identified 67 contracts that met the criteria discussed above. Those contracts included:
- Seven contracts related to various aspects of operating the Medicaid, Children's Health Insurance, Medical Transportation, and Administrative programs.
- Four contracts related to information technology and telecommunications services.
- Six contracts related to the pharmacy providers for the Vendor Drug Program.
- Fifty contracts for managed care services.
According to the Commission, as of June 1, 2016, expenditures for those 67 contracts had totaled approximately $62.3 billion. For the purposes of this project, HCATS was the most complete repository of Commission contract data, including expenditures associated with those contracts. Additionally, the State Auditor's Office reviewed expenditure data from the Commission's financial system (the Health and Human Services Administrative System) and the Uniform Statewide Accounting System to determine the reasonableness of total expenditures for certain contracts.
The State Auditor's Office will include the information identified in this report in its risk assessment process for selecting contracts to audit during fiscal year 2017. A list of the 67 contracts discussed above is attached to this letter.