GAO OUTLINED NUMEROUS AREAS OF WASTEFUL, DUPLICATIVE, AND INEFFICIENT SPENDING IN HHS BUDGET

WASHINGTON, MAY 9, 2012 – “The Department of Heath and Human Services (HHS) is the largest agency, by budget, under this Committee’s jurisdiction and is second only to the Department of Defense,” said Rep. Cliff Stearns (R-FL), Chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee’s Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations.  “At an agency as large as HHS, opportunities are ripe for wasteful and duplicative spending.”

Stearns today held a hearing examining the HHS budget and reviewing its implementation of the President’s order for agencies to conduct a line-by-line budget review to identify and eliminate wasteful, duplicative, or excessive spending.  James C. Cosgrove, Director, Health Care, U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO), testified on the cost-cutting recommendations GAO has made to HHS.  He stated, “HHS has implemented many of our recommendations that have proven to be financially beneficial while also enhancing program management. However, there are still recommendations we have made that remain open. While we recognize that some of the recommendations we have highlighted today are relatively new, others are several years old… We therefore urge HHS to expedite action on our open recommendations to further advance its performance and accountability.”

Stearns directed several questions to the HHS witness, Norris Cochran, Deputy Assistant Secretary, Office of Budget at HHS. Stearns questioned the failure of HHS to implement more of the GAO recommendations. Asked Stearns, “For example, now cancelling the Medicare Advantage Quality Bonus Payment Demonstration program, there is an estimate here it would save $8 billion over 10 years, are you familiar with that recommendation, is there a reason why you didn’t implement that recommendation from GAO?”  Cochran responded that under the Secretary “HHS has made a policy decision to continue that demonstration.”  Stearns responded, “Even though the GAO said it should be cancelled, you’ve agreed to override its recommendation, is that true?”

Stearns also noted HHS’s failure to reduce its budget from the previous year’s level.  Stearns asked, “Isn’t it true that the President has committed to conduct an exhaustive ‘line-by-line’ review of the federal budget to reduce unnecessary spending, isn’t it?”  After Cochran answered yes, Stearns continued, “You’ve just confirmed to us that the budget continues to grow, as do the number of Full-Time Equivalents?  In fact, the President’s requests of Congress for HHS funding from year to year continue to rise, isn’t that true?”  Cochran conceded that it was true.

Stearns also expressed his concern that what savings HHS made were being spent on other programs.  Asked Stearns, “You’ve indicated that your agencies are redirecting some savings that you find here elsewhere, isn’t that true?”  “In some cases that’s correct, in others we have reduced agency budgets,” replied Cochran.

In concluding the hearings, Stearns urged HHS to implement the GAO recommendations to reducing spending before seeking additional billions of dollars from the American taxpayers.