FARGO, N.D. (Valley News Live) – $7.29 million has been set aside for the North Dakota Department of Health to utilize for workforce retention programs.
Not only did the state auditor's office find that much of the funding was spent improperly, but it's not even clear that the program achieved its original objectives.
If the workforce retention program had worked as intended, it would have paid about $2,100 each to health care workers who provided home- and community-based services to Medicaid recipients.
Instead, auditors found that the funds were often distributed to health care workers not covered by the program or kept by companies that did not distribute the funds to eligible employees.
Moreover, DHHS did not keep any usable metrics to show whether the additional funding helped people stay in the health care industry: In fact, 32 percent of people eligible for the grant money left the industry during the period measured by the State Audit Office.
The overall audit uncovered more concerns: widespread drug diversion — though theft was not suspected — drew considerable attention to sloppy handling practices that could lead to theft. The report also found that DHHS was not consistently meeting in person with children suspected of abuse within the mandated time frame.
The ministry acknowledged all these shortcomings and said it has several plans in place to counteract these negative effects.
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