Audit office finds billing and control weaknesses in fire-department contractor and gaps in SAPD/Metro Health crisis-response procedures

The San Antonio Audit Committee on June 10 accepted two audit office reports that identified weaknesses in fire-department billing controls and in SAPD/Metro Health crisis-response team (CRT) operations, training and access controls. Committee members asked questions about budgeting, data and follow-up; both departments agreed with the auditor recommendations and proposed corrective-action timelines.

Abigail (Abi) García, Audit Manager, presented findings from a review of the fire-department contract used for patient-care billing. The auditors found gaps in controls that prevented the city from charging for some administered medications and other services. The presentation said certain medications were not configured in the billing system, that epinephrine-related entries were inconsistently billed, and that transportation fees were not always applied where required. The auditors recommended revising medication…