Audit Report on the Oversight of the Home-Delivered Meals Program by the Department for the Aging

The Department for the Aging (DFTA) administers the Home-Delivered Meals (HDML) program for older New Yorkers. To be eligible for meal delivery, one must be at least 60 years of age, be unable to attend a congregate meal site unattended, and either be unable to prepare meals or lack assistance for such preparation. DFTA currently has 21 contracts with 14 HDML providers responsible for delivering five meals a week to eligible seniors. During Fiscal Year 2010, DFTA reported that it delivered almost 3.8 million meals through the HDML program to an average of more than 16,000 clients each month. This audit determined the adequacy of DFTA’s oversight of the HDML program.

Audit Findings and Conclusions

Our review of DFTA’s oversight of the HDML program found that DFTA lacks adequate controls over its payment process. These control weaknesses increase the possibility that overbilling by providers may occur and remain undetected. During Fiscal Year 2010, DFTA did not request or review any documents as support for $25.4 million paid to the providers for the delivery of meals. Furthermore, from January 2009 through March 2010, DFTA was unaware that it paid more than an estimated $780,000 to one provider for the delivery of a second meal to its clients. DFTA officials mistakenly believed that the funding for this second meal was provided by a source other than DFTA.

In addition, DFTA had inadequate controls to ensure that providers complied with HDML contract standards and provisions. Specifically, DFTA did not monitor contract compliance on an ongoing basis, did not have a mechanism in place to ensure that it was aware of all complaints made by clients, and did not perform an annual assessment. As such, DFTA was not able to ensure that meals had been delivered to clients in accordance with standards set forth in the contracts and in its HDML policies.

Audit Recommendations

To address these issues, we make six recommendations, including that DFTA should:

• Verify that the number of meals reported delivered on invoices matches supporting documentation and resolve variances prior to making payments.
• Periodically compare the average number of meals delivered per client for each contract to detect irregularities.
• Ensure that key HDML performance standards associated with delivering meals to clients are monitored on an ongoing basis and that complaints from all sources are tracked.
• Ensure that the assessment process is reorganized for more effective performance evaluations.

Agency Response

DFTA officials agreed with the audit’s findings and its six recommendations, stating that they ‘wanted to note the constructive tone and partnership underlying this audit from the Comptroller’s Office. DFTA shares the Comptroller’s goal to make the best use of government funding to provide needed services to the City’s older adults.’