Slom probes Connector grants

Hawaii’s lone Republican senator is preparing to ask the federal government to investigate the state’s use of $204 million in Affordable Care Act grants meant to fund the troubled Hawaii Health Connector.

Sen. Sam Slom (R, Diamond Head-Kahala-Hawaii Kai) said he sent a letter to state Department of Health Director Linda Rosen on Wednesday requesting copies of grant applications and planning documents but has not yet heard from the department directly.

"The lack of transparency regarding the grant expenditure requirements prompts this request for information and documentation," Slom wrote in the letter after noting that Hawaii has the lowest enrollment rate in the country.

DOH spokeswoman Janice Okubo said the department didn’t administer the grants.

The Senate’s Commerce and Consumer Protection Committee, of which Slom is a member, held an informational hearing Monday to receive an official update on the status of the Connector from Interim Executive Director of the Connector Tom Matsuda, state Insurance Commissioner Gordon Ito and Gov. Neil Abercrombie’s Healthcare Transformation Coordinator Beth Giesting.

Slom asked Matsuda during that meeting to provide the committee with the total number of part- and full-time paid employees and the cost associated with them, how much of the $204 million has already been spent and how much money has been spent on advertising, among other requests, but has not yet received those figures.

"So far we have not gotten them that was Monday; this is Thursday," Slom said by phone. Slom said he checked with Sen. Roz Baker, chairwoman of the committee, Thursday morning, who said she had not received the numbers either.

Slom said he doesn’t expect to get the information he requested. His next course of action is to file a complaint with the U.S. Government Accounting Office, which he will likely send out Monday, calling for a federal investigation of how Hawaii’s money has been spent, he said.

The GAO earlier this month agreed to look into problems with state health exchange websites around the country.

"My conclusion is that this Connector was flawed fatally from the beginning, with an unrealistic business plan, and no change of personnel, tweaking or additional subsidies will solve its failures," Slom said in a news release Thursday.

Slom also takes issue with the fact that the state is still working under contract with "the failed national and Hawaii contractor, CGI Inc., at a cost of more than $53 million," and that the Small Business Health Options Program portion of the Connector remains "inefficient and dysfunctional," he said in the release.

Matsuda acknowledged during the hearing that the connector is experiencing issues with SHOP, but said it would have time to address them further once open enrollment ends March 31.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.