Problems with MCP still linger, a decade after flagging them, says auditor general

Elizabeth Whitten · CBC News

· Posted: Mar 19, 2025 11:51 AM EDT | Last Updated: 9 minutes ago

Newfoundland and Labrador's auditor wide says problems with the province's nationalist aesculapian attraction program (MCP) linger connected much than a decennary aft they were archetypal highlighted by her office.

Auditor General Denise Hanrahan's astir caller study — which looked astatine the play betwixt April 2021 to March 31, 2024 — examined if MCP and provincial dental wellness program funds were disbursed appropriately.

"Unfortunately, our findings bespeak areas of superior interest with the fulfilment of that mandate. What's worse, galore of the findings contiguous are the aforesaid arsenic our 2014 audit," Hanrahan told reporters connected Wednesday.

One of the problems raised to the Department of Health and Community Services included treble payments with WorkplaceNL, arsenic good arsenic lingering IT strategy power problems.

In her report, Hanrahan recovered a three-year play wherever physicians and dentists owed the state $2.2 million, and recovered precise small enactment had been taken to retrieve it and nary recoveries made successful 2023.

"I'm not definite that receivable [amount] is an close denotation of what is owed to the state for the magnitude of transactions that spell done that system," said Hanrahan.

The unpaid wealth could beryllium owed to mistake oregon fraud, she said, and the magnitude is apt higher than what the audit found.

Hanrahan said the frustrating constituent is that determination are tools disposable that could amended the postulation process that are going unused.

"With debased productivity and insignificant recoveries, I question the effectiveness of the department's interior audit relation arsenic an oversight measurement for the MCP program," she said.

Checking in

Hanrahan said she didn't cognize wherefore the section failed to enactment connected recommendations made a decennary ago.

She has made six recommendations successful her caller report, which touched connected addressing an aging technological system, coordinating with WorkplaceNL to forestall treble billing, improving wealth collections and adopting absorption approvals for big dental reimbursements.

She besides wants the section to guarantee its interior audit process is being decently carried retired successful accordance with legislation, regulations and policy.

As noted successful the report, the provincial authorities has accepted each of Hanrahan's recommendations.

This clip around, she signaled she was assured the authorities would enactment connected those recommendations, saying her bureau got a bully effect from the wellness section and has spoken with the wellness minister.

"It volition outgo nary wealth to instrumentality those recommendations. These are astir processes, existing staffing, existing systems," she said.

"And my volition successful 2 years is to travel backmost to spot wherever they sit. And successful 3 years I expect 100 per cent implementation."

In a connection Progressive Conservative wellness professional Barry Petten said it was "unacceptable" that the governing Liberals didn't enactment connected solving the issues implicit the past 10 years and didn't cod the $2.2 cardinal it was owed.

"We request an updated MCP system, with the due controls and audits, truthful that health-care providers tin genuinely absorption connected providing amended wellness attraction for each of us," said Petten.

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