 Some links will work for NIAID staff only.
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Standard Operating Procedure Table of Contents
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Purpose
To address allegations of criminal offense and misuse
of NIH grant and contract funds as well as improper
conduct by an NIH employee.
Procedure
Grantees should report allegations of criminal offenses
or improper conduct to the NIH Office
of Management Assessment (OMA).
Contractors should contact the HHS
Office of Inspector General (OIG). Allegations regarding a company's eligibility for small business awards should be directed to the appropriate Small Business Administration Office of Size Standards.
If contacted by grantees or contractors, staff
should follow the procedures below.
Grantees
Contractors
- Report fraud, waste, and abuse to OIG in
writing or by calling the Inspector General's Hotline at
1-800-HHS-TIPS
(1-800-447-8477). All telephone calls will be handled
confidentially. The email address is Htips@os.dhhs.gov and
the mailing address is:
Office of Inspector General
Department of Health and Human Services
TIPS HOTLINE
P.O. Box 23489
Washington, D.C. 20026
- If you choose not to contact OIG, you may contact NIAID staff or a contractor manager. Be
aware that staff will act in a confidential manner, but may not be
able to protect your anonymity.
- Be prepared to provide a summary of the allegation and supporting
documents.
NIAID Staff
- If grantees or contractors contact you with allegations
of fraud, waste, or abuse, you should advise them to contact OMA or
OIG, particularly if they want to protect their anonymity.
- If they do
not want to contact
OMA or OIG:
- Treat their allegations as confidential and inform them that you
will contact your supervisor.
- Request a summary of
the allegation and supporting documents.
- Do not
divulge any information or express opinions in your discussion
with the grantee or contractor. This may jeopardize an investigation
or your ability to serve as a subject matter expert.
- Contact your supervisor. He or she will contact your division
director, who will then contact the DEA director. Instead of informing
your supervisor, you may also contact OMA or OIG directly.
If you as a staff member would like to report possible fraud,
waste, or abuse:
- Contact OMA directly if you'd like to protect your anonymity. If not,
contact your supervisor.
Division of Extramural Activities Director
- Upon receiving information about fraud, waste, or misuse from
staff, report cases to the OMA director and NIAID Research Integrity Officer.
Definitions
Criminal offense -- includes
bribery; fraud; conflict of interest; embezzlement; misuse of funds,
equipment, and facilities; perjury; and other violations
of criminal law by NIH employees, grantees, contractors, or others
doing business with NIH.
Misuse of grant and contract
funds -- includes any unauthorized or inappropriate
use of grant or contract funds that violates federal grant
or contract regulations, HHS grants or contracts policy, or the terms
of an award, and violations of grant or contract regulations or policy
that
are not directly tied to misuse of funds.
Improper conduct -- includes performing
assigned duties in a manner that purposely contributes to the abuse or
waste of the taxpayers' money, is injurious
to the integrity of HHS or NIH, or is contrary to the standards of conduct
established by HHS, the Office of Government Ethics, or established
personnel practices and policies.
Contacts
OMA Director -- Suzanne Servis, ss558n@nih.gov, 301-496-1873.
NIAID Research Integrity Officer -- Marvin Kalt, kaltmr@niaid.nih.gov
, 301-496-7291.
Grantees with questions should contact the grants management officer listed on their Notice of Award.
Contractors with questions should ask the primary contact listed
in the RFP. See the NIAID Requests for Proposals list,
or see the Office of Acquisitions staff
listing.
Contact
for NIAID Staff
If you have knowledge to share or want more information on this topic, email deaweb@niaid.nih.gov with the title of this page or its URL and your question or comment. Thanks for helping us clarify and expand our knowledge base.
Links
HHS OIG Hot Line
NIH
Policy Manual 1754 -- Reporting Allegations of Criminal Offenses,
Misuse of NIH
Grant and Contract Funds, or Improper Conduct by an NIH Employee
Research Misconduct Cases SOP |
