Vendor Gets $700,000 Even Though Workers' Comp Contract Was Canceled

Monday, July 11, 2016 | 0

A poorly negotiated contract between a Houston vendor and the Connecticut Workers’ Compensation Commission could cost taxpayers $700,000.

Metex Inc. was hired for $3.7 million to upgrade the commission’s online system until the state Department of Administrative Services canceled the contract, ctpost.com reported.

Jaclyn Falkowski, communications director for Attorney General George Jepsen, refused to reveal details of the negotiations with Metex to retrieve a $700,000 early payout but said, “Our office is in discussions with the counsel for the company about this matter.”

John Geragosian and Robert M. Ward of the State Auditors of Public Accounts issued a report last week and said an early-payment requirement in the contract with Metex should have raised eyebrows.

The contract was canceled after state officials determined that a case-management system used by other state agencies could have been used to improve the workers’ compensation system, the news site reported.

“In many ways it’s like one hand not knowing what the other is doing,” Geragosian said. “We’re always concerned that agencies not enter into contracts until they know exactly what they are getting.”