MSDH Statement on State Auditor's Report on HIV Program Grants

Jackson, Miss. — The Mississippi State Department of Health (MSDH) takes the findings of State Auditor Shad White seriously and recognizes that there were issues in the oversight of certain grants related to HIV/AIDS prevention. We agree that the lapses identified are unacceptable and not reflective of our agency’s standards or mission.

Even prior to this report, MSDH had taken decisive action to strengthen oversight and accountability. This includes a leadership overhaul in the affected program nearly a year ago and the launch of a comprehensive agency-wide reform to modernize and tighten our grants management and compliance processes.

The Auditor’s concerns involve past agreements. None of the nonprofits cited in the report currently have active grants or contracts with MSDH to continue these activities. Today, our leadership is committed to a culture of accountability, transparency and measurable results.

“Since I was appointed State Health Officer, we have been actively working on improvements to create a culture of compliance while identifying inefficiencies and areas of risk to improve how MSDH serves the public,” said Dr. Daniel Edney. “As part of this effort, we have strengthened our infrastructure to support grants management with clear deliverables, accountability and comprehensive oversight across both federal and state programs.”

It is important to underscore that these findings do not reflect the value of many nonprofit partners we continue to work with across Mississippi. Partnerships remain critical to our public health mission.

Our Internal Audit division will continue to partner with the Office of the State Auditor. We are using this moment as a catalyst to implement meaningful improvements in how we operate.

We appreciate the Auditor’s attention to this matter and are fully committed to ensuring rigorous oversight of public health funds.