HOSPITAL SERVICE DISTRICT OF THE PARISH OF ST. BERNARD, ST OF LALocal Government

2021-001 Material Weakness: Compliance and Internal control over Allowable Costs and Special Reporting Compliance Title and Assistance Listing Number of Federal Program: COVID-19 Provider Relief Fund 93.498 Federal Award Identification Number and Year: 2021 Name of Federal Agency: Department of Health and Human Services Criteria: Per 2 CFR 200.303(a), non-federal entities are required to have processes designed and implemented to provided reasonable assurance regarding the achievement of objectives. Recipients of Provider Relief Fund (PRF) distributions are required to follow the terms and conditions of reporting requirements. Condition: Expenditures for the purchase of equipment were duplicated in the PRF round 1 and round 2 reporting. Cause: Controls were not effective over reporting which caused the District to inappropriately duplicate certain expenditures in round 1 and round 2 reporting within the Provider Relief Fund Reporting Portal. Effect: The District?s Special Reporting duplicated amounts quantified as usage of the PRF funds, resulting in $677,761 of funds having to be repaid to HRSA. Perspective: The inclusion of duplicate amounts in both reporting periods was a result of a misunderstanding of how the reporting portal worked. Since the period of availability for each round overlaps with all previous reporting periods, the District believed that the reporting was based on cumulative amounts received and used (from all prior periods). Questioned Costs: $677,761 Auditors? Recommendation: It is recommended that the District design, implement, and monitor proper controls around the accumulation of data for submission of Provider Relief Fund reports to the Provider Relief Fund Reporting Portal.