08/06/2024 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 08/06/2024 09:23
80% of payments to DocGo were unsupported or not allowed by contract terms
New York, NY - In a new audit released today of the Adams' Administration's $432 million contract with Rapid Reliable Testing NY LLC (commonly known as DocGo), the Office of the New York City Comptroller revealed that the Department of Housing Preservation & Development (HPD) failed to conduct sufficient oversight of the contract, costing taxpayers millions of dollars. The audit-commenced when the Adams Administration insisted on moving forward with the contract despite the Comptroller's Office's objections-found that HPD did not hold DocGo to contract terms and did not require DocGo to provide appropriate documentation demonstrating that claimed costs were actually incurred and reasonable. A detailed review of invoices presented for the first two months of the contract found that nearly 80% of payments-$11 million of $13.8 million paid-were unsupported and should be recouped.
"My office repeatedly sounded the alarm on the Adams Administration's rush to contract with DocGo, and our audit confirmed that the City's haphazard management ended up wasting millions of taxpayer dollars on DocGo," said New York City Comptroller Brad Lander. "Our detailed investigation into DocGo invoices and properties found a wide range of fiscal mismanagement and shoddy oversight-from DocGo overpaying security subcontractors by $2 million, skimming off over $400,000 in overhead for almost 10,000 unused hotels rooms, and failing to ensure promised social and casework services. Each misstep reveals that the Administration failed to adequately vet the company or oversee their work."
In May 2023, HPD entered into a one-year, no-bid emergency contract with DocGo to provide temporary housing and support services for asylum seekers, both inside and outside of New York City, under blanket authority granted by the Comptroller's office in July 2022 to address the rapidly rising numbers of new arrivals. The City contracted with a significant number of other providers to provide similar services within New York City, but DocGo was the only one contracted to provide these services outside of the five boroughs, which is unusual because the city does not have clear jurisdiction outside of the city. DocGo is a medical services company that provided COVID-19 medical testing and vaccination services, but lacked experience in providing any type of emergency housing (contrary to the "Written Determination" HPD provided to the Comptroller's Office at the time).
In September 2023, when the $432 million emergency contract was ultimately submitted to Comptroller's Office, the Comptroller denied it, citing numerous concerns associated with vendor selection, vendor responsibility, fiscal capacity and subcontractor selection. DocGo lacked experience in providing emergency housing, and the company failed to offer clear insight into its nearly half-billion dollar budget. City Hall chose to move forward with the contract despite the Comptroller's objections.
The Comptroller immediately commenced an audit of the contract and requested the initial invoices. Documentation for services provided for May and June 2023, the first two months of the contract, became available to the auditors in October and November of 2023. Auditors completed their detailed review of invoices and supporting documentation in April 2024. Auditors first shared their concerns about the poor quality of invoice reviews with HPD at a meeting on April 15, 2024. The Comptroller's Office shared the draft audit with HPD in early July 2024 and received a response July 19, 2024.
The Comptroller's detailed review of these invoices found:
A significant portion of respondents raised issues with the general lack of communication with DocGo staff caseworkers (80%) regarding next steps, such as work authorization, jobs, housing, school enrollment and medical appointments. Coupled with the fact that DocGo understaffed caseworkers and social workers on sites and that HPD did not enforce the number of caseworkers and social workers specified in the contract, these issues raise the concern that asylum seekers may not have received the services they needed to move towards self-sufficiency and out of the City's care.
Comptroller Lander continued, "The fiscal mismanagement coupled with the hazardous conditions and lack of case management is nothing short of cruelty. Thousands of asylum seekers travelled thousands of miles to seek safety and support as they start their new lives and instead were met with infestation, inedible food, and inadequate services. Our audit unearthed what we already suspected-that DocGo never should have gotten into the business of housing asylum seekers."
As of June 12, 2024, HPD paid DocGo $181.9 million for services provided under their contract. The City did not renew the contract with DocGo, but did grant a zero-dollar contract extension with DocGo to transition asylum seekers in upstate facilities out of their care through December 2024.
To address the review's findings and move to a more accountable asylum system, the auditors recommend that HPD should:
"Thank you Comptroller Lander for bringing to light this alarming situation," said Council Member Alexa Avilés. "This report is damning. While this city continues to nickel and dime tried and true nonprofit partners, the administration has squandered millions in a handout to a negligent corporation. Unfortunately, the Mayor's utter mismanagement both betrays the public trust and harms vulnerable newcomers."
"It is both disturbing and unsurprising to learn the extent to which DocGo grossly mishandled over $400 million in taxpayer dollars," said Council Member Shahana Hanif. "This avoidable error was enabled by the Adams Administration's reckless contracting procedures and continued dismissal of valid concerns raised by Comptroller Lander and many Council Members. I appreciate the Comptroller's thorough audit and urge the Administration to pivot to more effective uses of funds related to supporting new arrivals including expanding legal services and ending the inhumane and financially counterproductive shelter evictions."
"Comptroller Lander's audit paints a clearer picture of over-inflated and misused city spending including $2 million in overpayments to DocGo for security guards and $1.7 million for hotel rooms left unoccupied for months," said Council Member Julie Won. "As chair of contracts, I will continue to provide oversight on DocGo's existing $41 million contract with a migrant shelter in my district and push for human service providers to be awarded the city contracts to do this work."
Read the full audit here.
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