Why the $1.1 million travel‑nurse audit remains hidden

Newfoundland and Labrador Health Services (NLHS) paid Deloitte LLP almost $1.1 million to carry out a forensic audit of payments made to a travel‑nurse agency, according to records obtained by CBC Investigates.

The audit involved five separate payments to Deloitte. The first payment was made in September 2025 and the last invoice, described as “final,” was dated in early February 2024.

Newfoundland and Labrador Health Services recently rejected a CBC request for the audit’s findings. The authority said a discretionary section of the law lets it withhold policy advice or recommendations.

That same legal provision also states officials must disclose a final report or final audit on a public body’s performance or its programs. In its August 21 response, NLHS wrote that “content experts with NLHS have advised that the report is not yet finalized.”

The audit was launched after Auditor General Denise Hanrahan’s report highlighted $73.6 million paid to Canadian Health Labs and identified non‑compliant expenses and possible billing fraud.

Hanrahan’s findings included items such as a milk frother, a food processor, an air fryer and electric‑vehicle rentals, and she recommended an immediate comprehensive audit of all amounts paid to the agency from April 2022 onward.

Because the health authority says the final report is still being prepared, it can legally keep the draft private while the law forces it to release a completed report. This combination of legal exemption and the delay in finalising the audit explains why the public has not yet seen the results.

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Why the $1.1 million travel‑nurse audit remains hidden

Why the $1.1 million travel‑nurse audit remains hidden

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