Faulty databases cost Fla. millions

Faulty databases at the Florida Legal Affairs Department's Medicaid Fraud Unit have denied the state millions of dollars from fraud loss recovery, state auditors reported.

The auditors found that "department data systems were not complete and accurate, inhibiting computation and reporting of overpayments and costs associated with investigation and prosecution," their report said.

An audit of 60 cases found that 28 of them, or 47 percent, were not properly recorded by the case-tracking database. Additional database errors led to a $2.4 million understatement of restitution due to the state.

The auditors called for additional review and reconciliation of the databases, plus better procedures for using them.