South Carolina audit finds inadequacies in Medicaid transportation service program

The South Carolina Legislative Audit Council, the investigative arm of the General Assembly, on Wednesday released an audit report finding that the state might have improperly managed the Medicaid transportation program, the Columbia State reports.

Lawmakers requested a review of the system after the state Department of Health and Human Services, under the direction of Gov. Mark Sanford (R), awarded two out-of-state companies with a contract potentially worth $235 million to transport Medicaid beneficiaries to doctor appointments and physical therapy. The report found that the department might not have used a competitive bidding process in some instances.

The two companies, LogistiCare Solutions of Georgia and Medical Transportation Management of Missouri, received $52 million to make nearly three million trips last year. In 2007 beneficiaries complained of being stranded by the company or not getting picked up for appointments. According to the report, such incidents were isolated. However, the report states that the state HHS failed to "establish goals and performance measures" to justify the cost of the program and measure quality, and as a result the council cannot determine if new contractors are improving service.

State HHS spokesperson Brian Cost said the agency is addressing the problems cited in the report, including surveying patients about service quality (Chapman, Columbia State, 3/26).