Purpose

To determine the extent of the implementation of the four recommendations included in our initial audit report, Erie County Medical Center Corporation: Employee Incentive and Bonus Payments (Report 2016-S-29).

Background

Erie County Medical Center Corporation (ECMCC) is a public benefit corporation created under Public Authorities Law Section 3626 to manage the Erie County Medical Center health network. ECMCC is the only major public hospital in western New York and provides sophisticated and specialized patient care services to New Yorkers in eight counties. ECMCC offers two incentive programs, based on performance and productivity, to certain physicians. Performance incentives reward a physician for meeting certain criteria specified in the ECMCC employment agreement. Productivity incentives reward physicians based on the time and intensity associated with providing patient care services, which are measured and calculated using agreed-upon values specified in the ECMCC employment agreement. 

Our initial audit report, issued on January 13, 2017, examined whether incentive and bonus payments made by ECMCC were warranted, supported, and distributed appropriately based on program intent and/or established criteria. We found ECMCC did not properly administer certain incentive payments made to its employees. For the audit period reviewed, we identified $76,254 in incentive payments that should be recovered from employees because they were not justified under the terms of the relevant incentive plan, were distributed in error, or were miscalculated. In addition, we identified incentive payments that either had insufficient documentation or were otherwise not amenable to definitive analysis to determine whether they were entirely appropriate.

Key Finding

We found ECMCC has made progress addressing the issues identified in the initial audit, having fully implemented three of the four recommendations and partially implemented the other recommendation in our prior audit.

Key Recommendation

Officials are given 30 days after the issuance of the follow-up review to provide information on any actions that are planned to address the unresolved issues discussed in this review.

Other Related Audit/Report of Interest

Erie County Medical Center Corporation: Employee Incentive and Bonus Payments (Report 2016-S-29)