The report, by Deloitte and Touche auditors, was issued to the parliament earlier last week. The ministry’s fund operated on about $3.5 million in 2008, revenues from taxes and hospital fees.
The audit found $273,771 in purchases during fiscal year 2008 that did not have enough documentation to prove that they followed the government’s procurement law. Auditors said this showed there is a “lack of adequate internal control policies and procedures” governing procurement documentation required by law.
Auditors said the Ministry of Health has been advised in the past two audits for fiscal years 2006 and 2007 that it has not followed the procurement law in administering the Health Care Revenue Fund.
The ministry said it is going to “make it a policy for all high level administrators in the ministry responsible for initiating purchase requisitions to be well versed in the procurement code to ensure compliance.”
The audit also found ministry staff did not reconcile the Health Care Revenue Fund’s Bank of Marshall Islands account during the entire year, resulting in unrecorded collections from Ebeye hospital of $38,997.
In addition, Ebeye hospital’s daily collections and deposits of money are “not monitored by accounting personnel in Majuro,” and related receipts, daily cashier reports and bank deposit slips from June and July 2008 were not sent to Majuro until February 2009.
Money received from patients at Ebeye hospital was not entered into the ministry’s main accounting program as is the case for Majuro Hospital.
“Management,” said the audit, “only learned of this condition when it was brought to their attention during the audit.”
