Tag: COVID-19 Relief Funds

Former DHHR Official Pleads Guilty In COVID Test Fraud Case

A West Virginia man pleaded guilty to making false statements to federal investigators while he was an official with the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources.

Timothy Priddy, 49, of Buffalo, pleaded guilty Monday in federal court to making a false statement. Priddy admitted that he lied to federal investigators about the verification of invoices for COVID-19 testing that he certified while an official with the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources (DHHR).

According to court documents and statements made in court, Priddy was interviewed by federal agents on Aug. 2, 2022 while he was the director of the DHHR’s Center for Threat Preparedness.

In his previous position as Deputy Director, his duties included reviewing and verifying the accuracy of certain invoices submitted to the DHHR by vendors supplying COVID-19 testing and mitigation services before certifying the invoices for payment.

The agents asked Priddy about invoices submitted by a particular vendor that had billed the state of West Virginia tens of millions of dollars for COVID-19 testing and related services.

One series of invoices of interest to the federal investigation related to a COVID-19 testing program for K-12 students, faculty and staff returning to school after the winter holiday break. 

Priddy certified the K-12 testing program invoices without making any effort to verify their accuracy. Priddy falsely told the agents that he certified the invoices only after two individuals working with the K-12 testing program verified the invoices involved. 

Priddy admitted that he knew that statement was false.

William Thompson, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of West Virginia, said this case is unique in COVID-19 fraud cases he is trying in that Priddy stood nothing to gain financially in committing his crimes.

“He just basically cost the state quite a bit of money by not doing his job and not following through on it,” Thompson said.

Priddy is scheduled to be sentenced on May 9, 2024, and faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a $250,000 fine.

Chief United States District Judge Thomas E. Johnston presided over the hearing. Assistant United States Attorneys Joshua Hanks and Holly Wilson are prosecuting the case.

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Renewable Energy Progress And Combating COVID-19 Relief Fraud, This West Virginia Morning

On this West Virginia Morning, illegally obtaining COVID-19 relief funds is being called “the greatest fraud of our generation.” One of the front liners in investigating COVID-19 fraud is Northern West Virginia U.S. Attorney William Ihlenfeld. Randy Yohe spoke with the federal prosecutor about the extent of this crime against taxpayers, and how the public can help fight back.   

On this West Virginia Morning, illegally obtaining COVID-19 relief funds is being called “the greatest fraud of our generation.” One of the front liners in investigating COVID-19 fraud is Northern West Virginia U.S. Attorney William Ihlenfeld. Randy Yohe spoke with the federal prosecutor about the extent of this crime against taxpayers, and how the public can help fight back.   

Also, in this show, The Allegheny Front, based in Pittsburgh, is a public radio program that reports on environmental issues in the region. We listen to their latest story about the progress toward renewable energy.

West Virginia Morning is a production of West Virginia Public Broadcasting which is solely responsible for its content.

Support for our news bureaus comes from Shepherd University.

Caroline MacGregor is our assistant news director and produced this episode.

Listen to West Virginia Morning weekdays at 7:43 a.m. on WVPB Radio or subscribe to the podcast and never miss an episode. #WVMorning

Unite Us W.Va. Provides Assistance During Rollback Of Pandemic Benefits

Now that the state public health emergency has ended, monthly SNAP benefits have returned to the pre-COVID-19 public health emergency level based on the household’s income, assets, household size, and other non-financial factors. 

When the COVID-19 pandemic began, the federal government sought to help families through temporary emergency increases to benefit programs including Medicaid, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), and Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP). 

Since April 2020, the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources (DHHR) has issued SNAP, CHIP, and Medicaid emergency allotments, increasing each household’s monthly benefits.

Now that the state public health emergency has ended, monthly SNAP benefits have returned to the pre-COVID-19 public health emergency level based on the household’s income, assets, household size, and other non-financial factors. 

According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), 37.3 percent of West Virginia households receiving SNAP benefits have children. About 170,000 households have been affected in the state.

Devon Lopez is the community engagement manager for Unite Us, West Virginia. She said these changes not only create a hunger cliff, but in rural communities, the rolling back of benefits could create food deserts. A food desert is an area that has limited access to affordable and nutritious food.

“So this kind of becomes a larger issue than an individual just not receiving enough, you know, benefits to receive food. This is being experienced across all social wellness, but obviously, SNAP is the latest to be hit with this,” Lopez said. “And so what we’re seeing in West Virginia, is that we know one in six West Virginians actually receive SNAP benefits. And beyond that, what we do know is that a lot of those folks who receive SNAP benefits are in our rural communities.”

Lopez said the rolling back of pandemic-era benefits often has negative effects on organizations that provide assistance, like food banks.

Cyndi Kirkhart is the CEO of Facing Hunger Food Bank, based in Huntington. It is one of only two food banks in West Virginia. The other is Mountaineer Food Bank, based in Gassaway. 

Food insecurity will only increase along with inflation costs, Kirkhart said. She budgeted $2.5 million to purchase food for the Facing Hunger Food Bank in 2022. The bank actually expended $4 million to feed its community.

“It is going to provide a lot of, you know, negative effects on the organizations or entities that may be providing those assistance over time and we’re gonna see those you know, pull back as well,” Lopez said.

Unite Us, West Virginia aims to mitigate the fallout from unrolling benefits by providing an electronic platform for people and organizations to find assistance.

“We enable cross-sector collaboration between community-based organizations, government entities, health systems, nonprofits, really bringing all of those folks together on one single platform or infrastructure electronically,” Lopez said. “I call it the three C’s. It allows these organizations to all collaborate, communicate and coordinate for an individual’s care together beyond their four walls.”

Lopez said Unite Us is able to bring everyone together at one single table to meet the individual in need, where they’re at, and provide care and assistance.

“We’re so community-driven, because there’s multiple of me across the country that live and work in the communities working to build trust,” Lopez said. “And we’re not just an entity that comes in and says we’re going to help you like a lot of times we see in West Virginia. I’m from here, I believe in this and I’m doing the work on the ground.”

Unite Us is a unique program, according to Lopez, because they provide a team that’s ready to support people and organizations every step of the way.

“And I think one of the most unique things about the work that we do is the fact that our platform is absolutely at no cost for our community-based organizations so they can leverage this technology, the platform for referrals for free at no cost,” Lopez said.

Setting The Stage: The Consolidated Appropriations Act

During the COVID-19 pandemic, benefits were expanded and restrictions loosened to help immediate needs across the country. Now, federal lawmakers are reigning in this spending through actions such as the Consolidated Appropriations Act.

Changes at the Federal level to Medicaid benefits have led to programs such as the proposed Medicaid Buy-In Program included in House Bill 3274, being implemented throughout the United States.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, benefits were expanded, and restrictions loosened to help immediate needs across the country. Now, federal lawmakers are reining in this spending through actions such as the Consolidated Appropriations Act.

The act passed in December 2022, ending the Medicaid continuous enrollment provision, effective March 31, 2023 with a “phase-down” in COVID-enhanced federal matching funds, through the end of the year.

Cindy Beane is the commissioner of the Bureau for Medical Services, part of the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources (DHHR). She said before the COVID-19 pandemic, 515,000 individuals were enrolled in West Virginia Medicaid.

“Since the start of the pandemic, March of 2020, and not being able to disenroll anybody, our rolls just keep on increasing, so we’re now up to 690,000 individuals on West Virginia Medicaid, and we know a lot of these individuals no longer qualify for Medicaid for a variety of reasons, so, we will start that unwind,” Beane said. “As we unwind and people drop off our roles, we won’t need that money per se. So as far as us losing the money, we are losing the money that we’re also losing what the money was intended to pay for those individuals who will be starting to come off the rolls.”

In a budget presentation to the state Senate Finance Committee on Jan. 31, the DHHR reported that approximately 36 percent of West Virginians are enrolled in Medicaid.

The federal government provides each state with a Federal Medical Assistance Percentage (FMAP). The amount of which varies by state, based on the state’s per capita income. States with lower per capita income typically have a higher FMAP. However, each state’s FMAP cannot be less than 50 percent.

According to Beane, West Virginia’s FMAP is usually 75/25, or matching funds of three to one.

“What happened when the public health emergency came, every state was given an additional six percentage points in their FMAP. So, if you think about it, that took us up to 81 percent (in federal funding). What that equates to for West Virginia Medicaid is about $50 million extra dollars a quarter,” Beane said. “Why we were given that additional funding is because during the public health emergency, we were not allowed to disenroll anyone, meaning Medicaid, typically people come on and off Medicaid.”

Under the Consolidated Appropriations Act, the expiration of the continuous enrollment condition and receipt of the temporary Federal Medical Assistance Percentages (FMAP) increase is no longer linked to the end of the Public Health Emergency (PHE).

Public Health Emergency Federal Medical Assistance Percentages increase will be gradually reduced and phased down beginning April 1, and ending on December 31.

Reporter Roundtable Explores Health Legislation

On this episode of The Legislature Today, there have been a number of health-related issues discussed this legislative session – from gender-affirming care, to PEIA coverage and foster care. For this week’s reporter roundtable, Chris Schulz speaks with WVPB’s Appalachia Health News Reporter Emily Rice and Allen Siegler from Mountain State Spotlight.

On this episode of The Legislature Today, there have been a number of health-related issues discussed this legislative session – from gender-affirming care, to PEIA coverage and foster care. For this week’s reporter roundtable, Chris Schulz speaks with WVPB’s Appalachia Health News Reporter Emily Rice and Allen Siegler from Mountain State Spotlight.

Also, the West Virginia House of Delegates approved House Bill 2007 on Friday. The legislation would limit gender-affirming medical treatments and surgeries for transgender youth. HB 2007 passed on a vote of 84 to 10. It now goes to the Senate.

The Senate took up two bills Friday relating to gambling in the state, and two of the bills considered on third reading in the House dealt with immigration laws and county financial transparency.

Finally, the Senate Finance Committee spent the first several weeks of the session hearing budgetary presentations from every department of state government. But Friday morning, the committee turned its attention to how the last of the state’s coronavirus relief funds were spent. Chris Schulz has this story.

Having trouble viewing the video below? Click here to watch it on YouTube.

The Legislature Today is West Virginia’s only television/radio simulcast devoted to covering the state’s 60-day regular legislative session.

Watch or listen to new episodes Monday through Friday at 6 p.m. on West Virginia Public Broadcasting.

A Look At Education Challenges And Proposals

On this episode of The Legislature Today, from school safety to student success, there has already been a lot of discussion around the state’s educational system this legislative session. Education Reporter Chris Schulz sat down with two West Virginia teachers to discuss the state of our schools and some of the proposed changes.

On this episode of The Legislature Today, from school safety to student success, there has already been a lot of discussion around the state’s educational system this legislative session. Education Reporter Chris Schulz sat down with two West Virginia teachers to discuss the state of our schools and some of the proposed changes.

Also, more than 70 opponents of House Bill 2007 testified in the West Virginia House of Delegates Thursday morning. Only two witnesses spoke in support. The bill would limit gender-affirming medical care for transgender youth.

Following that nearly two-hour public hearing, House Democrats tried to amend the bill. One amendment would have forbidden all elective surgeries, like rhinoplasty or breast augmentation. This amendment and another Democrat-proposed amendment failed along party lines.

Finally, a second public hearing in the House pushed back against House Bill 2883, which would deliver $500 million in COVID-19 relief funds to the governor for economic development projects.

Having trouble viewing the video below? Click here to view it on YouTube.

The Legislature Today is West Virginia’s only television/radio simulcast devoted to covering the state’s 60-day regular legislative session.

Watch or listen to new episodes Monday through Friday at 6 p.m. on West Virginia Public Broadcasting.

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