Registered sex offenders illegally obtained $63,000 in erectile dysfunction drugs and other sexual treatments from New York’s Medicaid system, an audit reveals.
The audit, released Wednesday, shows $930,000 in erroneous payments for sexual treatments and drugs not covered by Medicaid under federal regulations. Forty-seven state sex offenders received these drugs through Medicaid, in violation of New York state law.
“There are clear rules about what conditions Medicaid will cover when it comes to erectile dysfunction drugs,” New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli said. “Paying for sex offenders who’ve committed terrible crimes to get these drugs should never be lost in the bureaucratic administration of this program.”
Health officials rejected the audit’s findings, saying that erectile dysfunction drugs can be covered under the program to treat other conditions. The auditors “either ignored the law or the facts which undermines any value that can be associated with its findings,” they said in a statement.
The state auditors fired back, explaining that many of these cases had no alternate diagnosis that would require a prescription for such drugs.
