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3 golden objects Minnesota Legislature

Office of the Legislative Auditor - Financial Audit Division

Report Summary
Health-Related Licensing Boards
Internal Controls and Compliance Audit

 

Financial Audit Division Report 14-20 Released October 24, 2014

The State of Minnesota has established 15 health-related licensing boards with the statutory responsibility to issue licenses and registrations to qualified individuals and firms and enforce laws, rules, and board policies related to certain health-related professions. Our audit focused on whether the health-related licensing boards had adequate internal controls to ensure that they properly accounted for licensing receipts and complied with related legal requirements.1 This work included verifying the accuracy and completeness of the receipts collected, deposited, and recorded for fiscal years 2012, 2013, and 2014. We also tested the boards’ licensing processes to determine whether they issued licenses only to people who submitted documents showing they met testing, educational, and experience requirements.

Conclusion

The boards of Chiropractic Examiners, Nursing, and Podiatric Medicine had adequate internal controls2 over their receipt and licensing processes and complied with finance-related legal requirements. We also concluded that the following boards had generally adequate internal controls3 over their receipt and licensing processes and generally complied with applicable legal requirements; however, some boards had internal control weaknesses and instances of noncompliance.

  • Behavioral Health and Therapy
  • Dentistry
  • Dietetics and Nutrition Practice
  • Examiners for Nursing Home Administrators
  • Marriage and Family Therapy4
  • Medical Practice
  • Optometry
  • Pharmacy
  • Psychology
  • Physical Therapy4
  • Social Work4
  • Veterinary Medicine4

 

Audit Findings

  • The Board of Medical Practice and the Board of Behavioral Health and Therapy did not adequately verify that licensees met continuing education requirements.
  • Eight health-related licensing boards did not adequately ensure that they deposited and accurately recorded fees for the licenses they issued.
  • The Board of Dentistry could not locate 134 dental assistant licensure applications.
  • The Board of Behavioral Health and Therapy allowed some employees to have access to its electronic licensing system who did not have related job duties.

1 In addition to our audit of the boards’ receipt and licensing processes, we performed financial reviews of the boards’ expenditures. A financial review is less in-depth than an audit, but provides some assurance that financial data are reliable, and the risk of noncompliance is relatively low. Based on these reviews, we decided that it was not necessary for our office to conduct additional audit work on expenditures.
2 These boards designed and implemented internal controls that effectively manage risks related to its financial operations.
3 With some exceptions, these boards designed and implemented internal controls that effectively manage risks related to its financial operations.
4 We did not perform detailed testing of receipts for these boards and did not identify any findings related to the boards of Marriage and Family Therapy, Physical Therapy, and Social Work.

More Information

Office of the Legislative Auditor, Room 140, 658 Cedar St., St. Paul, MN 55155 : legislative.auditor@state.mn.us or 651‑296‑4708