More than a year and half after a Washington Post investigation aired allegations that a non-profit for women with HIV was ripping the District off and providing shoddy services, the Office of Inspector General has found that most of those allegations are true.
The troubles centered around Hill's Community Residential Support Services, a non-profit that's since ceased operating. The OIG found that the Department of Health’s HIV/AIDS Administration can't properly account for $165,000 it paid to Hill's Community from 2008 to 2009. The OIG also found that Hill's Commmunity submitted invoices for taxes and benefits that were not paid, as well as for the salary of an employee who wasn't paid.
The OIG said it also found plenty of other questionable expenses the city paid for, including the vet bill of a cat that was used for "vermin control."
The Department of Health did a bad job monitoring the funds it provided to Hill's Community and knowingly allowed the non-profit to "continue receiving grant funds to pay for unsubstantiated expenses," the OIG said. DOH concurred with most of the OIG's findings and said it's already made improvements.
OIG Report Finds Crummy Oversight at D.C.’s HIV/AIDS Office was originally published by Washington City Paper on Aug 8, 2011
