Report I2012-1 Recommendation 5 Responses

Report I2012-1: Investigations of Improper Activities by State Agencies and Employees: Bribery, Conspiracy to Commit Mail Fraud, Improper Overtime Payments, Improper Use of Lease Proceeds, Improper Travel Expenses, and Other Violations of State Law (Release Date: December 2012)

Case Number I2010-1151

Recommendation #5 To: Corrections and Rehabilitation, Department of

Corrections should collect all of the improper payments the State made to the nurse and seek corrective action for the time the nurse falsely claimed to work.

Agency Response From September 2013

Our report found that Corrections improperly paid the supervising registered nurse $8,647. However, as Corrections had made numerous errors when calculating payments to her, we asked it to review our work and collect the improper payments it identified. In September 2013, Corrections reported that it had collected from the supervising registered nurse all of the overpayments it made to her. In total, it collected $8,872 from her, which was $225 more than the amount of the overpayments we identified in our report.

In addition, Corrections terminated the supervising registered nurse from state employment as of April 2013. She has appealed the decision, and a hearing regarding her termination tentatively has been set for May 2014.

California State Auditor's Assessment of Status: Fully Implemented

Agency Response From December 2012

Corrections reported that its office of internal affairs has approved a request to investigate the nurse's actions. Corrections' legal counsel is reviewing the documents obtained from the state auditor. If the facility sustains the misconduct and imposes a penalty, it expects to serve the adverse action by March of 2013. (See 2013-406, p. 277)