Former Health and Human Services Secretary Tom Price wrote two checks to the federal government for his wife’s travels in Asia and Africa the day before he resigned, according to documents obtained by The Hill.
The checks, which were dated Sept. 28, total a combined $7,502.66. He also wrote a check the same day for more than $50,000 to cover his expenses, which was previously reported
The two checks were intended to reimburse the federal government for the cost of his wife when she accompanied him on trips overseas on military aircraft, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) confirmed.
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Price resigned Sept. 29 after an investigation by Politico found that his use of military flights and private jets has cost taxpayers more than $1 million.
He held the job for less than 10 months, but in that time he traveled to Asia, Africa and Europe on official business aboard military aircraft, the investigation found. His wife Betty, a physician and Georgia state representative, accompanied him on those trips as an adviser.
The military aircraft trips were approved by the White House.
Price sent three separate checks to the U.S. Treasury on Sept. 28, according to documents obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request; two checks for his wife, and one to cover the cost of his seat on domestic trips aboard a chartered jet.
A check for $1,489 was written to cover Price’s wife’s seat on a trip to Asia, while a check for $6,013.66 was written to cover her seat on a trip to Africa.
The dates and amounts of the reimbursement for Price’s wife have not been previously reported.
The full cost of the overseas trips to Europe, Asia and Africa was more than $500,000.
Price did not reimburse the government for his seat on the military flights, but paid $51,887.31 for his share of the domestic flights. Some of those flights overlapped with personal events, including a lunch with his son.
He did not reimburse the government for the full cost of the domestic flights.
An HHS spokesperson in September said Price was taking an “unprecedented step” by reimbursing the federal government for his share of the travel.
“The taxpayers won’t pay a dime for his seats on charter planes,” the agency said.
Price’s travel tab exceeded $1 million, when both the overseas and domestic flights are taken into account.
His travel expenditures are the subject of an ongoing investigation by the HHS Office of Inspector General, as well as by bipartisan members of the House Oversight Committee.
Tom Price checks by M Mali on Scribd