Some Selected Health Centers Received Duplicate Reimbursement From HRSA

Summary

HHS OIG audit report A-02-23-02009, issued 12/16/2025, finds that some health centers received duplicate reimbursement from HRSA for COVID-19 testing services. It says Congress appropriated $8.2 billion in COVID-19 supplemental grant funding for the HRSA Health Center Program from 2020 through 2022, while HRSA separately reimbursed providers more than $24.5 billion from the COVID-19 Uninsured Program. Twelve of 106 sampled health centers charged $313,270 in laboratory costs to their supplemental grants and were also reimbursed by the UIP for the same services; OIG estimated $673,962 for its sample frame. OIG recommends that HRSA require the 12 health centers to refund $313,270, and HRSA concurred with both recommendations.

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Full text

Some Selected Health Centers Received Duplicate Reimbursement From HRSA For COVID-19 Testing Services

Issued on 12/16/2025 | Posted on 12/18/2025 | Report number: A-02-23-02009

Report Materials

Why OIG Did This Audit

- Congress appropriated $8.2 billion for COVID-19 supplemental grant funding for the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) Health Center Program from 2020 through 2022.
- Separately, during the same period, HRSA reimbursed providers more than $24.5 billion in COVID-19 Uninsured Program (UIP) funds for providing COVID-19 testing and treatment services to uninsured individuals.
- Prior OIG audit work identified that some health centers charged costs for processing COVID-19 tests to their COVID-19 supplemental grant funding and also submitted claims and received reimbursement for the same services from the UIP.

What OIG Found

- Twelve of 106 sampled health centers charged $313,270 in laboratory costs for processing COVID-19 tests to their COVID-19 supplemental grants, submitted claims for the same services to the UIP, and received reimbursements from the UIP for these services.
- On the basis of our sample results, we estimated that health centers in our sample frame claimed $673,962 in COVID-19 supplemental grant funds that were also reimbursed by the UIP for the same services.

What OIG Recommends

We made two recommendations to HRSA, including that it require the 12 health centers to refund $313,270 to the Federal Government. The full recommendations are in the report. HRSA concurred with both recommendations.

26-A-02-026.01 to HRSA - Open Unimplemented

Update expected on 06/15/2026

We recommend that the Health Resources and Services Administration require the 12 health centers that charged unallowable COVID-19 supplemental grant costs to refund $313,270 to the Federal Government.

26-A-02-026.02 to HRSA - Open Unimplemented

Update expected on 06/15/2026

We recommend that the Health Resources and Services Administration reiterate guidance to these 12 health centers for developing and maintaining financial management systems and internal controls that ensure that only allowable and allocable costs are charged to future HRSA programs similar in nature.

View in Recommendation Tracker

Report Type

Audit

HHS Agencies

Health Resources and Services Administration

Issue Areas

COVID-19 Emergency Preparedness and Response Financial Stewardship Public Health Issues

Target Groups

–

Financial Groups

Grants

Notice

This report may be subject to section 5274 of the National Defense Authorization Act Fiscal Year 2023, 117 Pub. L. 263 .

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