Janet Rehnquist (born May 4, 1957) is a former inspector general (I.G.) of the

United States Department of Health and Human Services The United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is a cabinet-level executive branch department of the U.S. federal government created to protect the health of all Americans and providing essential human services. Its motto is ...

(H.H.S.), a prominent Republican, and the daughter of former Chief Justice William Rehnquist.

Resignation and controversy

While the Inspector General Act of 1978 requires that an I.G. is selected based upon their qualifications and not their political affiliation, those appointed by the

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are often considered political appointees and may also be selected because of their political relationships and party affiliation. Rehnquist's job was to investigate fraud, waste and abuse at H.H.S., including Medicare fraud. During her term, CBS News obtained documents showing that Governor Jeb Bush's chief of staff, Kathleen Shanahan, had left Janet Rehnquist an urgent message and asked her to put off an audit into an alleged $571 million overpayment to the State of

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, which was discovered in 2002. Rehnquist quickly ordered a two-week delay of the audit. Two weeks stretched into five months, after which Rehnquist ordered her audit team to "proceed with (an) audit in North Carolina first, then do Florida." This put the audit well after Jeb Bush's election. It is alleged that Rehnquist then tried to halt an investigation by Congress. In March 2003, after

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had begun an investigation into the matter, Rehnquist resigned stating that she wanted to spend more time with her family.

References

Other sources

* "Pension fund probe urged."

Miami Herald The ''Miami Herald'' is an American daily newspaper owned by the McClatchy Company and headquartered in Doral, Florida, a city in western Miami-Dade County and the Miami metropolitan area, several miles west of Downtown Miami.Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large na ...

, Apr 13, 2003. Start Page: A.06 * Lee, Christopher, "GAO Cites Janet Rehnquist's Lapses; Former HHS Official Created Atmosphere of 'Distrust,' Report Says."

Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large na ...

, June 11, 2003. {{DEFAULTSORT:Rehnquist, Janet 1957 births Living people Place of birth missing (living people) Inspectors General of the United States Department of Health and Human Services United States Inspectors General by name Washington, D.C., Republicans