Executive Summary of the BSI FY24 Annual Report

An overview of the activities of the Bureau of Special Investigations in Fiscal Year 2024.

Overview

Public assistance programs administered by DTA, EEC, and MassHealth provide vital social services for the Commonwealth’s most vulnerable residents—children, persons with disabilities, low-income individuals and families, and seniors. This fiscal year, BSI was fortunate to have several new hires, allowing it to return to its normal staffing levels. Although BSI staff members continued to work under a hybrid workplace model, allowing for all investigatory tasks to be conducted in person, most subjects of BSI investigations chose to participate in interviews via videoconference. BSI relies on a variety of technology solutions to bridge the distance between offices, increase accessibility, and effectively complete public benefits fraud investigations. The fiscal year 2024 (FY24) Bureau of Special Investigations Annual Report summarizes BSI’s work and initiatives to execute its mission under its statutory charge: to help make government work better by investigating fraud, abuse, and illegal acts involving public assistance benefits throughout the Commonwealth. During FY24, BSI continued to investigate and identify fraud to maintain program integrity and uphold the Commonwealth’s residents’ faith in public assistance programs. BSI’s efforts ensure that public assistance programs operate with transparency, accountability, and equity.

$10,265,265  The amount of fraud identified by BSI in FY 24

In FY24, BSI opened 3,155 new investigations and completed 5,704³ total investigations. This report includes a comprehensive breakdown of the fraud identified within each program BSI investigates. It is notable that of the 584⁴ completed cases with identified fraud (10.2% of all cases completed), the average amount of fraud per completed case was $17,578.⁵ We also note that 1,996 cases were completed (34.9%) with no determination of fraud.

3.     This figure includes investigations that may have been opened during previous fiscal years and is not only limited exclusively to investigations opened during FY24.

4.     This number reflects all the cases with a calculated overpayment of a specific public benefit. These cases may or may not have a disposition, however, as the investigations are completed, but the cases may not be closed as of drafting this report. BSI uses different disposition codes to categorize closed investigations with identified fraud.

5.     Comparatively, during FY22, BSI completed 668 cases with identified fraud and the average amount of fraud was $20,239, and during FY23, BSI completed 782 cases with identified fraud and the average amount of fraud was $15,758. See https://www.mass.gov/lists/reports-on-public-benefit-fraud.

Date published:	January 30, 2025