Published: September 02, 2008 11:26 pm      

LEGISLATURE: Medicaid fraud specialist position set

Much expected from $75K a year position

Niagara County lawmakers are expecting big returns from a new Medicaid fraud investigator’s position.

Members of the Niagara County Legislature on Tuesday established an annual salary of $74,998 for the new job of Medicaid fraud specialist which they hope will generate far greater returns in the amount of money the county recovers from Medicaid scams each year.

“I’m confident we will see some real results,” said Legislator Paul Wojtaszek, R-North Tonawanda. “It’s two-fold — we get money back which is a revenue generator and we deter other people from stealing from the taxpayers.”

State funds will cover the salary and benefits for the new position as a result of the county’s involvement in a special Medicaid fraud demonstration project being coordinated by the state Office of Medicaid Inspector General.

County lawmakers believe the new in-house inspector will generate substantial revenues for the county in the coming years.

Wojtaszek, who sponsored the original resolution in support of creating the new position, said while the county has traditionally funded up to 25 percent of the total cost of local Medicaid services, it is rarely fully compensated in cases where Medicaid abusers are discovered and prosecuted. Wojtaszek said the new position should allow the county to recover a larger portion of its initial investment.

Wojtaszek indicated that the county also will be eligible for reimbursement of support services for the position, including clerical staff and possibly additional auditing services.

“This is the tip of the iceberg,” Wojtaszek said. “We are going to see some real progress. We are going to see some real results.”

County officials have determined, that based on the duties of the job, the position will be filled by an attorney. On Tuesday, the Legislature established an ad hoc committee of five lawmakers to conduct the search for someone to fill the position.

In other matters, the Legislature:

n Tabled a resolution that would have allowed the county to borrow $6.7 million for various capital projects, including a proposed $2 million storage building for Sheriff’s Department vehicles. The bond issue came under scrutiny from Minority Leader Dennis Virtuoso, D-Niagara Fall, who called into the question the county’s need to borrow money with interest to upgrade the county’s payroll system, purchase new public works vehicles and buy furniture and perform renovations at various county buildings. Budget Director Daniel Huntington said the entire proposal would require the county to pay off the debt at about $500,000 a year for 20 years starting in 2009. Huntington said the package assumes an interest rate of 4 percent.

Lawmakers agreed to hold off on a vote on the issue for two weeks to allow County Manager Gregory Lewis, who did not attend Tuesday’s meeting, to address the need for the items on the list of capital projects.