Federal Reports

Five States received almost $475 million in Social Services Block Grant funding to help cover social service and reconstruction expenses resulting directly from Superstorm Sandy. When Congress made funds available to States to help pay for their Superstorm Sandy-related expenses, it noted that such funds were "susceptible to significant improper payments." Therefore, the Office of Management and Budget instructed Federal agencies to establish additional oversight of the funds. This evaluation examined States' experiences using Superstorm Sandy Social Service Block Grant (Sandy SSBG) funds and Administration for Children and Families (ACF) oversight of these funds.

As required by statute, Medicare sets payment amounts for drugs infused through durable medical equipment (DME infusion drugs) at 95 percent of the average wholesale prices (AWPs) in effect on October 1, 2003. AWPs, which represent list prices rather than actual marketplace prices, have been long been recognized as a flawed pricing benchmark. In February 2013, OIG issued a report to CMS regarding Medicare payments for DME infusion drugs. In that report, we made one recommendation and suggested two options for its implementation. Because CMS had not taken steps to address our recommendation, and payments continued to be misaligned with drug costs, OIG revisited this issue in a 2015 report.

The Office of Inspector General released a report examining NASA’s progress in managing the technical, schedule, and cost risks of the Orion Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle Program.