The Santa Fe New Mexican, Oct. 25, 2013

Page 1

Merchant of menace — Vincent Price in ‘House of Wax’ Inside

Locally owned and independent

Friday, October 25, 2013

The New Mex

ican’s Week ly Mag

azine of Arts,

Entertainment

& Culture

October 25,

2013

www.santafenewmexican.com $1.25

Obsessed with the undead Paranormal experts explore why so many people believe in ghosts.

Obama renews focus on immigration

City attorney steps down

Cardinals pull even in World Series

The president makes a plea for Republican cooperation to pass legislation by the year’s end.

Geno Zamora is leaving to become general counsel of Santa Fe Public Schools.

Carlos Beltran shakes off bruised ribs to help St. Louis even the Series at a game each.

PAGE A-3

LOCAL NEwS, B-1

SPORTS, B-5

Pakistan King, Balderas promise involved thorough investigation in drone strikes BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SERVICES AUDIT

GEN NExT, C-1

HEALTH CARE REFORM

Site issues attributed to changes, lack of tests

CIA files show country has endorsed program for years; former prime minister denies role By Greg Miller and Bob Woodward

The Washington Post

Congressional hearing examines what led to botched rollout By Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar and Stephen Ohlemacher The Associated Press

WASHINGTON — Contractors who built the Web portal for the Obama administration’s health insurance marketplace said Thursday the site’s crippling problems trace back to insufficient testing and changes that government officials made just prior to going live. Who’s to blame? The first congressional hearing into what went wrong dug into issues of website architecture and testing protocols — but also restoked the partisan battle over President Barack Obama’s signature expansion of health coverage for millions of uninsured Americans. Republicans who’ve been trying to kill the program the past three years sounded outraged that it is being poorly carried out, while Democrats jeered them as political hypocrites. What was clear after more than four hours of testimony was that the contractors had only partial answers, and only the Obama administration can eventually put the entire picture together to explain the botched rollout. Better times are coming, said executives from CGI Federal, which built the HealthCare.gov website serving 36 states, and from QSSI, which created a component that helps verify applicants’ incomes and other personal details. They said problems are being fixed daily and expressed optimism that anybody who wants coverage will able to get it by Jan. 1. “The system is working, people are

State Auditor Hector Balderas, left, and Attorney General Gary King appear Thursday before the Legislative Finance Committee to discuss their separate investigations into allegations of Medicaid fraud against 15 behavioral health providers. JANE PHILLIPS/THE NEW MEXICAN

AG, auditor update lawmakers on inquiries into allegations By Steve Terrell

The New Mexican

A

s New Mexico’s attorney general continues to investigate allegations of Medicaid fraud against 15 mental health providers, State Auditor Hector Balderas told lawmakers Thursday he is looking into the audit that prompted the investigation, to see if the private company that performed it followed proper procedures in finding “credible allegations of fraud.” Balderas and Attorney General Gary King appeared before the Legislative Finance Committee on Thursday to give an update on their separate inquiries. Neither offered a strict timeline on when he will complete his investigation, though King said his may be concluded by the end of the year. The probes were prompted after Gov. Susana Martinez’s administra-

Please see HEALTH, Page A-5

tion suspended Medicaid payments to the 15 providers in early July and contracted with Arizona providers to replace 14 of those firms. (Funding eventually was restored to one firm.) The move rattled the state’s behavioral health system, and since then, several legislative panels have been looking into the shake-up. Balderas and King are both Democrats who have announced their candidacies for higher office — Balderas for attorney general and King for governor against Martinez, a Republican. Balderas told reporters after the hearing that in addition to his annual financial audit of the department, he’s also performing a “risk review” of the $3 million, 350-page audit of the behavioral health providers, performed by Public Consultant Group, a Boston firm hired by the Human Services Department. That audit — which estimated

some $36 million in overpayments to the providers — does not specify which allegations of possible fraud apply to which providers, Balderas said. “We are still in the process of gathering specific facts about how Human Services verified credible allegations of fraud.” He said the review will examine the Boston auditing company’s methodology and whether the department followed all rules and regulations — including procurement laws. Both the private auditor and the Arizona providers were hired on emergency no-bid contracts. Balderas declined to give a date when he expects to complete this review. He said the document will be made public. Human Services spokesman Matt Kennicott said his department has followed the national Affordable Care Act — which mandates stricter

Please see AUDIT, Page A-4

Cathedral leader links firing to complaint Former music director says he was terminated after expressing concerns about rector’s conduct By Tom Sharpe The New Mexican

The music director at the Cathedral Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi told members of the church community that he was fired this week after he complained to the archbishop about the rector’s behavior. In an email sent Wednesday to more than 45 people, whom he addressed as “music ministers and Cathedral family,” music director

Index

Calendar A-2

Xavier Gonzales said he recently wrote Archbishop Michael J. Sheehan with a list of concerns about the Rev. Adam Lee Ortega y Ortiz. Among his concerns, Gonzales said Ortega lacked “pastoral sensitivity,” had created a hostile work environment and was prone to “crude and inappropriate” behavior, including an “inability to keep his hands to himself.” “I don’t think it’s necessary to kiss, pat on the stomach, rub a chest, twist

Classifieds C-3

Comics A-8

Lotteries A-2

a nipple or spank a buttocks to say ‘hi,’ ” Gonzales wrote. Ortega, 47, a well-regarded priest who acquaintances say is a “hugger,” succeeded the Very Rev. Monsignor Jerome Martinez y Alire as rector of the cathedral in June 2012. Prior to his current assignment, he served as pastor of Santa María de la Paz Catholic Community. In addition to his duties at the cathedral, Ortega has continued to serve as rector of the Santo Niño Regional Catholic School and as chaplain at St. Michael’s High School, where he graduated. Gonzales said in his email that he

Opinions A-7

Police notes B-2

Editor: Ray Rivera, 986-3033, rrivera@sfnewmexican.com Design and headlines: Kristina Dunham, kdunham@sfnewmexican.com

Sports B-5

was summoned Wednesday to the Catholic Center in Albuquerque, where Ortega handed him a letter of termination in the presence of the Archdiocese of Santa Fe’s human resources director, Cathy Salcido. “Your personal feelings against me have gotten to the point where they seriously hamper my ability to lead the parish effectively toward its goals,” Ortega said in the letter, according to Gonzales. “Your feelings have created a significant personality conflict between us.” Ortega said Thursday that he could

Please see FIRING, Page A-4

Time Out C-2

Generation Next C-1

Main office: 983-3303 Late paper: 986-3010

WASHINGTON — Despite repeatedly denouncing the CIA’s drone campaign, top officials in Pakistan’s government have for years secretly endorsed the program and routinely received classified briefings on strikes and casualty counts, according to top-secret CIA documents and Pakistani diplomatic memos obtained by The Washington Post. The files describe dozens of drone attacks in Pakistan’s tribal region and include maps as well as before-andafter aerial photos of targeted compounds over a four-year stretch from 2008 to 2011 in which the campaign intensified dramatically. Markings on the documents indicate that many of them were prepared by the CIA’s Counterterrorism Center specifically to be shared with Pakistan’s government. They tout the success of strikes that killed dozens of alleged al-Qaida operatives and assert repeatedly that no civilians were harmed. Pakistan’s tacit approval of the drone program has been one of the more poorly kept national security secrets in Washington and Islam-

Please see DRONE, Page A-4

Church gets blessing A project to restore and renovate San Antonio de Padua in Questa has received the blessing of the archbishop, who earlier had called for the church’s closure after its partial collapse. LOCAL NEwS, B-1

Obituaries Eugene R. Falvey, 84, Santa Fe, Oct. 16 Judith Ellen Ficksman, 55, April 27 Robert Leo Giles Sr., 92, Oct. 22 Faye Myrick, 59, Oct. 22 PAGE B-2

Today Partly sunny with a shower. High 63, low 39. PAGE B-8

Three sections, 24 pages Pasatiempo, 72 pages 164th year, No. 298 Publication No. 596-440


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