Nearly $6 million in state-owned Louisiana State University hospital equipment is missing, and millions more is unaccounted for, according to a recent audit.
Here are six things to know about the audit.
1. Conducted by the office of the Louisiana Legislative Auditor, the audit examined the Baton Rouge-based LSU Health Sciences Center — Health Care Services Division for the fiscal year that ended June 30.
2. The audit found the following:
- HCSD failed to ensure $15.1 million in asset purchases for the new University Medical Center New Orleans were considered for tagging and entry into the state's asset management system. According to The Advocate, all equipment worth more than $1,000 is supposed to be tagged and its location logged in Louisiana's asset management system.
- $1.1 million in equipment from Interim LSU Hospital, UMC New Orleans' predecessor, hasn't been found since the shift to the new facility.
- Additionally, $4.7 million in property from the now-closed LSU Earl K. Long Medical Center in Baton Rouge cannot be located.
3. According to The Advocate, HCSD agreed with the audit findings and said the division is taking steps to locate and tag the state property.
4. The issue with University Medical Center is attributed in The Advocate to the fact that the state Office of Facilities Planning and Control purchased $15.1 million in new hospital equipment but never gave HCSD or UMC's private operator — Louisiana Children's Medical Center, now known as LCMC Health — invoices for the equipment purchased.
5. HCSD official Jerry Jones said in the report from The Advocate that the auditor is confident the $15 million of untagged equipment is not missing, and that the items referred to in the audit are being entered into the inventory system. "The time lag for entry is due to the volume of items needing entry but that process is taking place," he said, according to the report. "The equipment has been received with documented receiving reports and, according to the University Medical Center Management Corp., the equipment is in the hospital and has been tagged."
6. As far as the property missing from Earl K. Long hospital, Louisiana Legislative Auditor Daryl Purpera said his office was told some of the property went to hospital clinics and some of it was stored in big containers, according to The Advocate. He added, "But they did not make a list where they were putting stuff."
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