FBI, HHS OIG Begin Inquiries Into Cover Oregon.

The Oregonian Share to FacebookShare to Twitter (5/4, Budnick) reported that the FBI and the HHS Office of Inspector General are both beginning inquiries into Cover Oregon, the state’s healthcare insurance exchange, while the GAO and the House Oversight committee also are investigating. The Oregonian backgrounds how the inquiries gained traction, noting that “documents show Oregon may have presented a misleading picture to the federal government” about its exchange, and says that “it is unclear how far along the FBI and HHS inquiries are, or how vigorously they are being pursued.” Questions likely will revolve around whether state officials meant “to defraud the federal government” or were “just unduly optimistic or out of touch with reality.” One former assistant US Attorney, Bob Weaver, told the Oregonian that “this would be a hard, hard case to prove criminally unless there was some sort of false statements made in order to get a drawdown of the money.”
The Wall Street Journal Share to FacebookShare to Twitter (5/5, Paletta, Barrett, Subscription Publication) reports that the FBI and HHS OIG investigations join multiple state probes already underway.
KATU-TV Share to FacebookShare to Twitter Portland, OR (5/2, Kopta) reported in continuing coverage on critical comments made about the exchange by departing head Tom Jovick.
Original Posting from Bulletin Healthcare.