Auditor General Eugene DePasquale today said he has asked Gov. Tom Corbett for details on $48 million spent by the commonwealth to date to prepare for the launch of the Healthy PA program to provide health care coverage for Pennsylvanians.
“Healthy PA only recently received approval from the federal government and has yet to provide health care coverage to anyone, but according to a Sept. 9 news article, Gov. Corbett’s policy director said more $48 million in taxpayer dollars has already been spent to prepare for the program,” DePasquale said. “As Pennsylvania’s fiscal watchdog, and in the spirit of transparency, I want to see a complete and detailed accounting of the expended $48 million.”
In a Sept. 12 letter to Gov. Corbett, DePasquale requested copies of all contracts, including the requests for proposals and/or sole source justification documents and itemized billing statements, for all contracts related to the Healthy PA program. DePasquale asked that the administration provide the information as soon as possible so auditors can determine if any additional review is necessary.
“I appreciate the work the Corbett Administration has undertaken on the Healthy PA plan, but $48 million is a substantial amount of money, especially in such tight fiscal times,” DePasquale said. “I just want to make sure that the commonwealth’s taxpayer dollars are being spent in the best interest of Pennsylvanians.”
DePasquale noted that $48 million could provide retail flu shots for 2 million Pennsylvanians, purchase manual wheelchairs for nearly 100,000 people, or more than fully fund the annual budgets of all of Pennsylvania’s state health centers for two year.
Text of the auditor general’s letter to Gov. Corbett follows here:
The Honorable Tom Corbett
Governor
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
225 Main Capitol
Harrisburg, PA 17120
Dear Governor Corbett:
In the September 9 edition of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, your policy director referenced $48 million in state and federal dollars already spent by the commonwealth to prepare for Healthy PA. I appreciate the work your administration has undertaken on this plan.
As Pennsylvania’s fiscal watchdog and in the spirit of transparency, I request a complete and detailed accounting of the expended $48 million. I also request copies of all contracts, including the requests for proposals and/or sole source justification documents and itemized billing statements, for all contracts related to the Healthy PA program. I ask that you provide this information as soon as possible so I can determine if any additional review is necessary.
I appreciate your cooperation as we work to ensure that Pennsylvania’s precious tax dollars are expended in the best interest of the people of this state. If you have any questions, please contact me at 717-787-2543.
Sincerely,
Eugene A. DePasquale, Auditor General
