Audit: New York's Medicaid program bought erectile dysfunction drugs for sex offenders

Syracuse Post-Standard reported.

The audit, conducted by State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli, also showed Medicaid made $930,594 in payments for erectile dysfunction treatments and pills that are barred by state and federal law, the newspaper reported.

The audit covered the period from April 1, 2012, to July 1, 2018.

“There are clear rules about what conditions Medicaid will cover when it comes to erectile dysfunction drugs," DiNapoli said in a statement. "And paying for sex offenders who’ve committed terrible crimes to get these drugs should never be lost in the bureaucratic administration of this program.”

New York's state Department said it "strongly disagrees" with DiNapoli's findings, the Democrat and Chronicle reported. Department officials said the drugs are only not limited to treating sexual problems, but also can be used to treat hypertension, high blood pressure in the lungs and enlarged prostates, the newspaper reported.

However, DiNapoli's office said the improper payments discovered in the audit were for drugs solely approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to treat erectile dysfunction, according to the Post-Standard.

The comptroller's office found in 2005 that Medicaid paid for the erectile dysfunction drug Viagra for 198 people registered as level-3 sex offenders, the Post-Standard reported. That prompted legislation at the state and federal levels to bar Medicaid from paying for those drugs, the newspaper reported.

In 2011, the state's management of pharmacy benefits for many Medicare enrollees was shifted from the Department of Health to managed care organizations, the Post-Standard reported. DiNapoli's audit found that managed care organizations are not always enforcing what drugs enrollees can obtain, while it reported the Health Department did not monitor the use of erectile dysfunction drugs.

In the audit, the state Health Department said it "summarily rejects" DiNapoli's findings.

“(The Office of the State Comptroller) either ignored the law or the facts, which undermines any value that can be associated with its findings,” Health Department officials said.