It’s not hard to agree with James Deyermond (“After State of the Union, Maine is faced with a choice,” March 1) that fraud should be rooted out from government expenditures wherever it occurs. Perhaps there is some fraud in Medicaid payments in Maine. What I find troubling is that Mr. Deyermond, as chairman of the Maine Republican Party, seeks to be reiterating a Republican Party agenda that only looks at problems in Democratic majority states.
Is there Medicaid fraud in Florida, Texas or Alabama? I bet there is! And why is there only voter fraud in states that win Democratic majorities? And, why is that whenever there is bad news it turns out to be fake news?
Richard Hackel
Chebeague Island
MANAGEMENT & CULTURE (THE “TONE AT THE TOP”)
Fraud thrives in “sloppy” environments where leadership ignores the rules.
- The Fraud Triangle: For fraud to occur, three elements must be present: Pressure (the need for money), Rationalization (thinking “I deserve this”), and Opportunity (weak controls). You can only control the Opportunity.
- Whistleblower Hotline: Provide an anonymous way for staff to report “odd behavior.” Most internal frauds are caught via tips, not audits.
- Background Checks: Conduct credit and criminal record checks for all employees in financial or data-sensitive roles.
- Annual Ethics Training: Make sure every staff member knows that the company has a Zero Tolerance policy toward “borrowing” from petty cash or fudging overtime.