SALEM, Ore. (AP) — The Oregon Department of Human Services says it’s investigating a $40 million grant program, and a top manager for the program has resigned.
The Oregonian reports that grant program manager Julia Huddleston resigned Aug. 31. DHS declined to discuss details of the investigation or say whether criminal wrongdoing is suspected.
The “Money Follows the Person” grant program was endorsed by Congress in 2005 to help states move seniors and people with disabilities from expensive nursing homes to less-institutional settings. Oregon was approved for $40 million and received its first disbursement in 2008; most of the money in the program is federal.
The Clatsop Care Center Health District says it was starting an $8 million building project on the promise it would receive $1.8 million from the program. The district chief executive says that money’s on hold and the project apparently had never been approved.
