Damning HSE audit reveals luxury hotel stays and alcohol among expenses claimed

A draft HSE response to a Comptroller and Auditor General, seen by Independent.ie, revealed €300 claims for the luxury Merrion Hotel in Dublin and €500 a night for a hotel in Milan.

"Claims for hotels appeared excessive," the report claimed.

It also found an employee "travelled to New York for a conference accompanied by a personal guest. Flights were claimed for this guest and the hotel bill claimed for this guest and the hotel bill claimed showed two stayed in the room."

The damning 42 page draft audit report, sent in error this evening to Oireachtas members, reveals a cascade of flaws, oversights and errors in practice within the Health Sector.

"Another two claims had alcohol included in reimbursement receipts," the report found.

The document said that the lack of control over the payment of medical education expenses could "give rise to improper expenditure and financial loss to the Exchequer."

The C&AG recommended that the HSE should ensure that there are proper control procedures in place over the payment of such expenses.

It was confirmed last night that the document was sent inadvertently to senators by a HSE official.  The HSE this evening said the document was sent in error to Senators as a result of "human error."

A spokesman for the HSE said it is very much a draft document in response to the C&AG's findings.

The audit report also found in the HSE South West that a former retired employee was rehired in June 2013 on a contract for six hours per week.

The HSE are currently paying the former employee a salary of €156k from an old consultant salary scale instead of placing them on the new entrant scale at a salary of €109k.

The C&AG concluded that this situation increases the risk of a salary overpayment occurring.

He recommended that the HSE ensures that any retired employees rehired are placed on a correct salary scale and where appropriate they should have their pension abated.

Separately, more than €1.4m in salary overpayments to HSE staff have not been paid back, a draft audit document in to the health sector has revealed.

The document, obtained by the Irish Independent, shows that salary overpayments totalling €2.9m were made and "no repayments had been made in 2013 in respect of €1.4m of these."

It also found that Crumlin does not "notify the HSE of instances of fraud as required under the service level agreement".

In relation to voluntary hospitals, the report found seven agencies got their funding without a service agreement being in place until the end of the grant year; the HSE signed agreements with three agencies before they were audited; in one case no agreement had been signed by the HSE, but the money was still paid; and in ten cases, no meetings between the HSE and the agencies took place, but again  the money was paid over.

Such "a lack of monitoring and oversight by the HSE could result in monies not being spent for the purpose intended," the document states. Ultimately, the HSE accepted recommendations by the C&AG to avoid such oversights again.

The HSE said it accepted a range of C&AG recommendations in relation to the Voluntary Hospital sector.

The audit also examined the payment of private charges relating to the treatment of patients  by consultants in three hospitals.

It found that at the Limerick Regional Hospital invoices totalling €5.5m remained outstanding for consultants' approval.

At Waterford Regional, the amount outstanding was €3.1m while at Sligo General Hospital the amount outstanding was €2.2m.

The report found that delays in submitting claims to the insurance companies and the absence of timely follow ups could result in a financial loss to the exchequer.

The C&AG report recommended that the HSE should ensure claims are processed to insurance companies within 30 days of patient discharge.

In response, the HSE said "specific operational" issues raised by the C&AG have been addressed.

"Ideally the HSE would like to see the hospital charge decoupled from the consultant sign off, but the private insurance companies have strenuously resisted this," the HSE response