by BYRON HARRIS
Bio | Email
WFAA
Posted on August 25, 2011 at 10:37 PM
Updated Thursday, Aug 25 at 10:37 PM
NEWS 8 INVESTIGATES
For the past six months, News 8 investigations have revealed hundreds of millions of dollars of questionable Medicaid spending on braces for children in Texas.
Now federal investigators are auditing the Texas Health and Human Services Commission, which controls those funds. Taking the lead in the audit is the Office of Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
In a letter to the state, the inspector general says it will examine the "authorization process for orthodontic treatment" under Texas Medicaid. "The objective of our audit," the letter continues, "is to review the State's controls to ensure that only medically necessary orthodontic cases are paid." The time period covered by the audit is September 1, 2008 through May 28, 2011.
