Medicaid bought sex offenders’ erectile dysfunction drugs

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — New York’s publicly funded Medicaid program paid more than $63,000 for erectile dysfunction drugs and other sexual treatments for sex offenders, despite laws banning such expenses.

The figures come from an audit released Wednesday by state Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli and first reported by The Associated Press.

State and federal laws prohibit payments for sexual treatments for any Medicaid recipient. Yet auditors found that the state approved a total of more than $930,000 for such treatments between 2012 and 2018.

DiNapoli urged immediate changes to ensure the state isn’t misusing taxpayer money.

Health officials say erectile dysfunction drugs can be used to treat other conditions, including prostate problems.

But auditors discount that, saying in many cases the sex offenders who received the drugs had no relevant diagnosis.