New York comptroller rejects $432 million migrant deal
Doc no go.
New York City Comptroller Brad Lander on Wednesday rejected the city’s $432 million non-binding migrant housing and care deal with a medical provider — saying it lacked expertise and others controversies.
“My office did not take this decision lightly. “After careful consideration, we refuse to approve this contract due to numerous outstanding concerns,” Lander said said in a statement on its decision to return the Department of Housing Preservation and Development’s nine-figure deal with DocGo.
There is “little evidence” that DocGo — formerly known as Rapid Reliable Testing NY LLC — had the experience to provide housing, transportation and even social services to the thousands of migrants who flood the city each month, Lander said away.
“It’s a medical service company, not a logistics company, not a social service provider, or a legal service provider,” he said pointed out in the rejection letterNoting “reports of staff abusing or misleading asylum seekers, failing to respond appropriately to reported abuses and providing inadequate services.” [that] further exacerbate these concerns.”
Lander also cited previous reports of possible “inflation in the company’s financial value, law enforcement interference and workplace violations.”
Lander’s comments came shortly after it was revealed that DocGo was looking to convert the New York contract into a $4 billion federal deal, with CEO Anthony Capone boasting that the emergency deal gave the company “credibility” on a larger scale.
Lander cited Capone’s comments in his disapproval, including the CEO’s “’high level of confidence’ that the refugee crisis will boost future revenues.
“Rather, the CEO seems intent on taking advantage of the fact that the longer asylum seekers remain in their care, the more the company’s revenue increases under this contract,” Lander warned.
While Mayor Eric Adams can overrule Lander’s decision and approve the contract, the auditor’s rejection will likely prevent City Hall from paying DocGo for work completed under the contract. explained the New York Times.
The city’s housing agency could resubmit a cheaper version of the contract for review, Lander said.
“It is the first contingency contract that we have refused approval out of 300 contracts filed with our office,” Lander said in an interview with the outlet.
“With nearly 60,000 people currently in the city’s care, and thousands more joining each month, we are doing everything we can to prevent families from being forced to sleep on the streets and we are confident that ours are doing so.” Partners in the Office of the Comptroller will work with us to achieve that goal,” mayoral spokesman Charles Kretchmer Lutvak told The Times.
The auditor actually approved the DocGo deal in July, Lutvak argued.
However, Lander countered that his office had only authorized the use of a declaration of emergency and that the contract still awaited formal scrutiny.
In addition to an investigation by Attorney General Letitia James, DocGo is also under the scrutiny of Gov. Kathy Hochul after an investigation found the company was using unlicensed security guards in city refugee shelters.
DocGo’s contract with the city went into effect May 5 after Mayor Adams used the emergency order to bypass the bidding phase, The Times reported.
Lander has reportedly been trying to get the details of the agreement since then and was only given access to the contract on Aug. 16, the outlet said.
To date, he noted, the city has allocated only about $15.3 of its budget to pay DocGo’s bills, despite racking up over $70 million in debt.
The paperwork also didn’t support claims that the city had “exhausted” its efforts to find an alternative contractor who could do the work without a cash advance, Lander said.
The documents also revealed “conflicting statements” about DocGo’s ability to provide the required services, he added.
DocGo did not immediately respond to the Post’s request for comment.
