PENNSYLVANIA Passavant disputes overcharges, says state owes late payments

BEAVER, Pa. (AP) -- A state agency wants a group home provider to reimburse taxpayers $2.2 million in what officials allege were overcharges for treating the mentally ill, but the nonprofit insists that the state owes it money for late payments.
The Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare released an audit listing four years of alleged overcharges by Passavant Memorial Homes to seven counties and the state.
The audit follows a settlement between Passavant and the state attorney general in which Passavant agreed to reform its executive compensation plan and pay a $450,000 fine to go toward primary services.
Passavant disputed both findings and insisted that the state owes the nonprofit $5 million in late payments for housing patients. Passavant said it hopes to clear up the issue through settlement negotiations in the coming weeks.
Passavant attorney Jay D. Marinstein also said the audit was based on the calculation of charges for workers compensation and unemployment compensation, not excessive compensation to executives, as was alleged by the attorney general.
"We want to be clear, given all the attention that was focused in the past on Passavant: The DPW audit does not call for any repayment on executive compensation," Marinstein said.