Although the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Has Made Progress, It Did Not Always Resolve Audit Recommendations in Accordance With Federal Requirements

Although the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), has made significant progress in the timely resolution of audit recommendations since our previous review (of Federal fiscal years (FYs) 2006 and 2007), CMS did not always resolve audit recommendations in a timely manner during FYs 2015 and 2016. Specifically, CMS resolved 1,231 of the 1,371 recommendations that were outstanding during FYs 2015 and 2016. However, it did not resolve 405 of the 1,231 recommendations (32.9 percent) within the required 6-month resolution period. In addition, as of September 30, 2016, CMS had not resolved 140 audit recommendations that were past due for resolution. Some of the past-due recommendations had associated dollar amounts that totaled $138.6 million; others were procedural in nature.