Feds Seek to Recoup $341K for Tom Price's 'Unauthorized' Air Travel

HHS denies former secretary's chartered airplane trips were unauthorized 'as a matter of law' and says federal auditors made 'legal conclusions' that overstepped their authority.

Federal auditors are urging the Department of Health and Human Services to recoup more than $341,000 in unauthorized air travel expenses that led to the ouster of former Health and Human Services Secretary Tom Price.

"Of the 21 trips, we determined that for one trip all applicable federal requirements had been followed," HHS's Office of the Inspector General said in a 58-page audit released Friday. "The remaining 20 trips did not comply with federal requirements, including all 12 chartered aircraft trips."

"Overall, we determined that the use of chartered aircraft and identified noncompliance issues resulted in waste of federal funds totaling at least $341,000," the audit said, with a recommendation that HHS "determine appropriate administrative actions to recoup" the expenses.  

Price, an orthopedic surgeon, was forced to resign last September, eight months after his appointment, after reports of his travel abuses surfaced.

HHS Deputy Secretary Eric Hargan conceded the sloppy documentation for air travel, and said HHS has since "instituted new travel review procedures applicable to all political appointees" that he called "most rigorous controls on travel in the organization’s history."

However, Hargan said auditors were not tasked with determining whether Price broke the law.

"The work of an audit is to review compliance with procedures, not make legal conclusions. As a matter of law, none of the travel at issue was unauthorized," Hargan said in a media release.  

Specifically, auditors said that Price's use of chartered aircraft was noncompliant with federal guidelines because the former secretary did not do a cost comparison to commercial airline services, did not adhere to contract requirements, and did not properly authorize the use of chartered aircraft.

"We also found specific instances of noncompliance related to the travel records for former Secretary Price and certain HHS travelers," the audit said. "Insufficient review of authorizations and vouchers and many employees' failure to complete required travel card training contributed to these instances of noncompliance."

In January, Price was named on the advisory board Jackson Healthcare, an Atlanta-based staffing firm that declined to detail his compensation.

"Nobody has as profound an understanding of the national healthcare landscape as Dr. Price," Richard L. Jackson, chairman and CEO of Jackson Healthcare, said in a January media release.