Sent via e-mail to Robert.Eckert@hhs.

gov

December 18, 2010

Robert Eckert
Freedom of Information Officer
US Department of Health and Human Services
Mary E. Switzer Building, Room 2221
330 C Street, S.W.
Washington, D.C. 20201
FOIA REQUEST
Dear Mr. Eckert,
This is a records request submitted under the Freedom of Information Act and any other applicable public
records laws.
1) Please see attached a November 8, 2010 letter from US Department of Health and Human Services
Special Agent Elton Malone to Tim Bagwell PhD. In his letter, Special Agent Malone writes
HHS/OIG/OI/SIB has referred this matter to CDC for further review, and appropriate administrative
action. Please provide me with any and all related records.
2) Also see attached the first page of an October 11, 2010 letter to HHS Inspector General Daniel
Levinson from Tim Bagwell PhD. The first paragraph reads:
According to Department of Health and Human Services records, from 2001-2007 the US Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) awarded $3,335,578 to the Save-A-Life Foundation
(SALF), a Chicago-area 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization whose charter was to provide first aid
training classes to students in schools. This is to request that your office review and determine
whether those monies were properly administered.
Please provide me with any and all HHS records pertaining to the disposition of this request.
If available, please provide the records in digital format via e-mail. I agree to pay reasonable duplication
fees for the processing of this request in an amount not to exceed $25. Please notify me prior to your
incurring any expenses in excess of that amount.
If my request is denied in whole or part, I ask that you justify all deletions by reference to specific
exemptions of the act. I also expect you to release all segregable portions of otherwise exempt material.
Thank you for your assistance and I look forward to receiving the requested records.
Sincerely,

Peter M. Heimlich
3630 River Hollow Run
Duluth, GA 30096
e-mail: Heimlich@volny.cz

12/07/2010

TUE 1 3 : 4 9

PAX 2 0 2 2 0 5 2 3 5 2

DEPARTMENT Of HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

NOV

Office of Inspector General

Office of Investigations
Special Investigations Branch
330 Independence Avenue, S,W.
Washington, DC 20201

g 2010

Timothy C. Bagwell
5872N.IL 130
Olney, IL 62450
RE:

Complaint of Misconduct - Browne

OIFile#:H10003784

Dear Mr. Bagwell:

The United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Office of Inspector
General (OlG), Office of Investigations (OI), Special Investigations Branch (SIB), is in receipt of
your letter dated OeLober 11, 2010. In your letter, you allege potential misconduct on the part of
Douglas Browne, an employee of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Specifically you state that CDC may have improperly approved Browne's outside activities with
the Save-A-Life-Foundation, and that Browne may have exceeded the scope of the approval
which he received from CDC management.
HHS/OIG/OI/SIB has reviewed the information you provided, and has determined that there is
not enough information presented to warrant an investigation for potential violation of criminal
statutes. HHS/OIG/OI/SIB has referred this matter to CDC for further review, and appropriate
administrative action as this matter appears to be more appropriately addressed through CDC's
administrative review process. Should you have any additional questions, please feel to contact
Assistant Special Agent in Charge Scott A. Vantrease at (202) 619-1485.

Sincerely,

Elton Malone
Special Agent in Charge
Special Investigations Branch

Timothy C. Bagwell, Ph.D.

5872 N IL 130
Olney, IL 62450
812 607-0721
October 11, 2010
Daniel R. Levinson
Inspector General
Department of Health and Human Services
Room 5250 Cohen Building
330 Independence Ave. SW
Washington, DC 20201
Dear Inspector General Levinson:
According to Department of Health and Human Services records, from 2001-2007 the US
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) awarded $3,335,578 to the Save-ALife Foundation (SALF), 1 a Chicago-area 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization whose charter
was to provide first aid training classes to students in schools. This is to request that your
office review and determine whether those monies were properly administered.
Since November 2006, SALF has been the subject of numerous news exposes, the first of
which uncovered a series of misleading claims and deceptive credentials that raise
doubts about Save-A-Life's integrity, funding and training.2
According to news reports last month, 3 SALF is currently under investigation by the
Illinois Attorney Generals Charitable Trusts Bureau (CTB). Recent correspondence from
the CTB 4 indicates that SALF recently filed a zeroed-out annual financial report that
failed to account for hundreds of thousands of dollars in assets as well as other
discrepancies, one of which appears to be SALFs failure to file a tax return last year with
the Internal Revenue Service.
Presumably the Illinois CTB investigation of SALF will focus on state-related issues.
This letter is to bring to your attention concerns related to the millions in federal tax
dollars awarded to SALF by the CDC.
This is also to request that your office review the relationship between SALF and
Atlanta-based CDC Deputy Director Douglas R. Browne, who served as SALFs
Corporate Treasurer from January 1, 2004 until September 17, 2009, when the foundation
filed for voluntary dissolution. 5 As SALFs Treasurer, Mr. Brownes responsibilities
presumably included the administration of the millions CDC awarded to SALF, a
potential conflict of interest.

http://taggs.hhs.gov/RecipInfo.CFM?SelEin=LCYqSyk%2FXC5KQTxLW1FaOEsK
http://abclocal.go.com/wls/story?section=news&id=4770490
3
http://bagwellforcongress.com/media/news-articles.html
4
http://bit.ly/byAhuh
5
http://bit.ly/ci9pgF
2

DIVIDER

September 13, 2016

Peter Heimlich
3630 River Hollow Run
Duluth, Georgia 30096
Dear Mr. Heimlich:
This letter is in response to your Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Agency for Toxic
Substances and Disease Registry (CDC/ATSDR) Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request dated December
18, 2010 regarding records of OIG investigation and dispositionof monies administered by save-a-life foundation.
We located 14 pages of responsive records. After a careful review of these pages, some information was withheld
from release pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 552 Exemption 6.
EXEMPTION 6
Protects information in personnel and medical files and similar files when disclosure would constitute a clearly
unwarranted invasion of personal privacy.
You may contact our FOIA Public Liaison at 770-488-6277 for any further assistance and to discuss any aspect of
your request. Additionally, you may contact the Office of Government Information Services (OGIS) at the
National Archives and Records Administration to inquire about the FOIA mediation services they offer. The
contact information for OGIS is as follows: Office of Government Information Services, National Archives and
Records Administration, 8601 Adelphi Road-OGIS, College Park, Maryland 20740-6001, e-mail at
ogis@nara.gov; telephone at 202-741-5770; toll free at 1-877-684-6448; or facsimile at 202-741-5769.
If you are not satisfied with the response to this request, you may administratively appeal by writing to the Deputy
Agency Chief FOIA Officer, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs, U.S. Department of Health and
Human Services, 5600 Fishers Lane, Room 19-01, Rockville, Maryland 20857. Please mark both your appeal
letter and envelope FOIA Appeal. Your appeal must be postmarked or electronically transmitted by ________
{DATE of letter plus 90 Calendar days}
Sincerely,

Roger Andoh
CDC/ATSDR FOIA Officer
Office of the Chief Information Officer
(770) 488-6399
Fax: (404) 235-1852
11-00272-FOIA

From:

Sent:
To:
Cc:
Subject:

Attachments:

Humphrey, Shelia L. (CDC/OCOO/OD)

15 Feb 201118:00:11 +0000
Vantrease, Scott A. (OIG)
Corley, Belinda (CDC/OCOO/OD);Humphrey, Shelia L. (CDC/OCOO/OD)
FW: Complaint forwarded from OIG/OI/SIB
CDC Complaint.pdf, SALF OIG RESPONSE.docx

Hi Scott: Please see the attached response to the OIG referred complaint regarding the Save-A-LifeFoundation. Please feel free to contact Belinda Corley at (404) 498-4431 or myself at (404) 498-2110 if
you should have any questions.
Thanks
Shelia Humphrey

From: OS Vantrease, Scott

Sent: Tuesday, November 09,20102:10

PM

To: Harris, Barbara (CDC/OCOO/OD)

Subject: Complaint forwarded from OIG/OI/SIB

Barb:
The attached complaint was received by OIG and reviewed by the Office of Investigations (01), Special
Investigations Branch (SIB). After reviewing the complaint, Ol/SIB determined that it would be more
appropriately addressed by CDC. Should CDC's review identify any potential criminal violations, please
refer the matter back to my attention.
As always, if I can be of assistance, please let me know.
Regards,

Scott A. Vantrease
Assistant Special Agent in Charge
Special Investigations Branch
HHS/OIG/OI Headquarters
Office: (202) 619-1485
Fax: (202) 619-0745
Any information furnished to you or your agency by the Office of Inspector General (OIG)
may not be released except by the OIG. Inquiries into OIG matters should be referred to
the OIG for a response.
This e-mail may contain confidential and/or privileged information. If you are not the
intended recipient (or have received this e-mail in error) please notify the sender
immediately and destroy this e-mail. Any unauthorized copying, disclosure or
distribution of the material in this e-mail is strictly forbidden.
From: Vantrease, Scott A (OIG/OI)

Sent: Tuesday, November 09, 2010 2:07 PM

To: Vantrease, Scott A (OIGjOI)

Subject: Scanned document from Vantrease, Scott A (OIGjOI) (Scott.Vantrease@oig.hhs.gov)

(b)(S)

l
1...--.

__

---,~.

October 11, 2010

Daniel R. Levinson
Inspector General
Department of Health and Human Services
Room 5250 Cohen Building
330 Independence Ave. SW
Washington, DC 20201
Dear Inspector General Levinson:
According to Department of Health and Human Services records, from 2001-2007 the US
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) awarded $3,335,578 to the Save-ALife Foundation (SALF),l a Chicago-area 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization whose charter
was to provide first aid training classes to students in schools. This is to request that your
office review and determine whether those monies were properly administered.
Since November 2006, SALF has been the subject of numerous news exposes, the first of
which "uncovered a series of misleading claims and deceptive credentials that raise
doubts about Save-A-Life's integrity, funding and training.,,2
According to news reports last month;' SALF is currently under investigation by the
Illinois Attorney General's Charitable Trusts Bureau (CTB). Recent correspondence from
the CTB4 indicates that SALF recently filed a "zeroed-out" annual financial report that
failed to account for hundreds of thousands of dollars in assets as well as other
discrepancies, one of which appears to be SALF's failure to file a tax return last year with
the Internal Revenue Service.
Presumably the Illinois CTB investigation of SALF will focus on state-related issues.
This letter is to bring to your attention 'Concerns related to the millions in federal tax
dollars awarded to SALF by the CDC.
This is also to request that your office review the relationship between SALF and
Atlanta-based CDC Deputy Director Douglas R. Browne, who served as SALF's
Corporate Treasurer from January 1,2004 until September 17,2009, when the foundation
filed for voluntary dlssolurion.' As SALF's Treasurer, Mr. Browne's responsibilities
presumably included the administration of the millions CDC awarded to SALF, a
potential conflict of interest.

http://taggs.hhs,,gov/Reciplnfo,CFM?SeIEin=LCY
gSyk%2 FXC5KQTxL WI FaOEsK.
http.;I!abclocaLgo.coJllfJY.iLstQ.r.:x1.sSQtiQlEP.e\~li'fId=4770490
3 http;!!b~~ellforcongress.com/.m~dl~n!?'O,'~.::.1!-rtl.~~~t!:mJ
4 http://bitiY/byAhuh
. s http:hbit.lv/ci9pgF
I

1. False medical and educational credentials provided on CDC funding application

A. From "The Maneuver" by Chuck Goudie, ABC7 Chicago, November 16, 2006;6
One of Illinois' highest profile charities teaches the Heimlich maneuver to
children while maneuvering the truth to get moneyfrom government and big
business. It's called the Save-A-Life Foundation and is known across Illinois as
an organization that teaches schoolchildren how to respond in emergencies. For
the past few years, Save-A-Life has received millions of dollars in government
funds and corporate donations. An ABC7 J- Team investigation has uncovered a
series of misleading claims and deceptive credentials that raise doubts about
Save-A -Life's integrity, funding and training.
(Carol) Spizzirri is the matriarch of the Save-A-Life Foundation, based in west
suburban Schiller Park, and she has captured the attention -- and the funding -of those who hold government purse strings. For nearly 15years, to mayors and
members of congress, she has represented herself as trained, registered nurse.
Spizzirri says she got her nursing degree in Wisconsin. Currently, Save-A-Life's
website and her bio claim, not only that she is an RN. but that she specializes in
kidney transplants .
...According to state officials, the now-defunct Wisconsin college where Spizzirri
claims to have received a nursing degree never awarded her a degree of any kind,
and government records show she has never been registered as a nurse in either
Wisconsin, as she told the I-Team she was, or in Illinois.
"I had a nursing degree and 1have worked in a hospital, said Spizzirri.
1/

Officials at the Milwaukee hospital where she claims to have been a transplant
nurse say she had a paid job for a couple of years, as a patient care assistant akin
to a candy striper .
... Spizzirri repeatedly tells politicians and public this story of her motivation:
"My daughter was coming home from work on Labor Day of '92. She was struck
by a hit-and-run, and her arm had been severely injured, and she bled to death
before EMS arrived, said Spizzirri.
1/

But even that isn't true, according to police and hospital reports and an inquest
by the Lake County coroner. The official record states that 18-year-old Christina
Spizzirri was legally drunk at the time of the accident; and that after hosting a
drinking party while her mother was vacationing in Florida, the teenager got
behind the wheel and flipped her own car.
Police records show there was no hit-and-run, and even though the local police
didn't know emergency first aid, the teenager did no' die at the scene as Carol

6 btJD:{/abclocal.go.conv'wlsls\ory?secti

on=news&jd=l770490

.
'

.....

Spizzirri contends. Medical records stale that Christina died 30 minutes after
arriving at the hospital.
J- Team: "It was not a hit and run, was it?"
Spizzirri: "Yes, it was. Oh, my gosh. J got proofof
interview's over.

that, absolutely ... I'm done, the

1/

After terminating that interview three weeks ago, Spizzirri's spokesperson

requested that we e-mail our additional questions. So we asked for information
supporting Spizzirri's often repeated story of Christina's death and any proof that
Spizzirri has the medical training, licensing and expertise that she claims. They
provided the l-Team with nothing.
B. An April l S, 2004 SALF application for a $1,005,000 CDC grant that was signed by
Spizzirri required the applicant to provide "highest degree earned." The applicant filled in
the section with "RN BS," undoubtedly representing "Registered Nurse" and "Bachelor
of Science,"? As reported by ABC7, both credentials were false. By including the
credentials on its sworn CDC grant application, SALF appears to have violated the False
Claims Act. 8
II. Problematic claims; more potential violations of the False Claims Act
Claims made by SALF
A. According to the October 11,2009 Chicago Tribune:9
(Carol) Spizzirri launched a nonprofit organization dedicated to teaching
children emergency response techniques, raising at least $8.6 million in federal
and state grants for her Save-A-Life Foundation ... Spizzirri, who estimates 2
million children look the classes, many of them from the Chicago Public
Schools. "
B. In an April 13, 2004 cover letter to CDC Grants Management Specialist Angie Turtle that
accompanied the above-referenced $1,005,000 grant application (footnote 4), Spizzirri
wrote:
Since 1997 SALF has trained nearly 1 million children in Illinois, moving into
Wisconsin in 2003 ...
According to SALF's 2006-07 Annual Corporate Report - which, incidentally, identifies
Spizzirri as an RN and claims her daughter died as the result of a hit and run accident,
both of which were reported as false by ABC7 - SALF conducted 6,462 first aid training
classes in the Milwaukee Schools in which 161,549 students were trained. 10

htm:!!bit.ly/b.islIzT

htt[):/LwW~&Qrnel).edu/uscodej31/usc

sss__31

00003722----000-.hlr!).1_

http://bit.ly/dxcTSp
10 http://bit.Jyl9jfCGR

C. In follow-up reports filed by SALF with the CDC describing how funds from the
above grant were spent, SALF claimed to have trained thousands of Chicago Public
School (CPS) students as well as 500 Milwaukee Public Schools students, and were
developing programs with Milwaukee Public Schools to train thousands more. II
Contradictions
D. Re: SALF's Chicago schools claims, any classroom program that provided in-school
first aid training classes to hundreds of thousands, if not millions of CPS students would
produce a significant paper trail: training records, schedules, evaluations, employment
records, etc.
.
However, in response to a federal subpoena and FOrA requests for all SALF records,
CPS produced only 22 invoices dating from 2000-2007. On inspection, these skimpy
records substantiate that at best a few hundred students may have received first aid
training from SALF, although even that number is unsubstantiated. 12 According to CPS,
there are no records to support SALF's extravagant claims.
Further, as reported in the ABC7 report cited above:
Schools CEO Arne Duncan says it seems unlikely that Carol Spizzirri's
organization could have taught the number of stll;dentsthey claim.
To summarize, last year Spizzirri told the Tribune, "2 million children took (SALF)
classes, many of them from the Chicago Public Schools," yet the schools have next-to-no
records and former Chicago Schools CEO Arne Duncan (now US Secretary of
Education) disputes her claim.
E. Re: SALF's Milwaukee claims, in response to a FOrA request last year, the
Milwaukee Public Schools stated that they had no records whatsoever regarding SALF.13
F. SALF' s reports to the CDC described a number of branch offices and programs that
are in doubt, exaggerated, or possibly fabricated. A thorough examination is beyond the
scope of this letter, however, one example is a January 14, 2005 press release posted on
SALF's website" which claims SALF awarded a $25,000 grant to Anderson Hospital in
Maryville, IL. The press release suggests that the funds originated from the CDC; other
records (available on request) reinforce this claim.
However, according to a recent news report, the president of the hospital has denied that
the hospital ever received the $25,000.1 Adding to this muddle, SALf's reports to the
CDC described their program at Anderson Hospital, albeit vaguely. 16
Vagueness and lack of facts characterize every aspect of SALF's reporting to the CDC.
When and where did training classes take place? What are the names of the individuals
II hrt.p:/lbit.ly/9lKsiJ

http://bit.lyfdv4FOT
http://bit.Jy.'bIOFvJ
14 http://bit.ly/9cceOK
1 s httn.;ilmedilldev.netl20
16 btlp;llbit.lyl91KsiJ
12

13

1Q/09!in-illinois-coQgr~ssiQnal-race.qgQD~.abQl!1:..c.Mxjhl.

who conducted the training? Precisely how were the millions of dollars allocated? Instead
the reports are filled with generalizations and what appear to be dubious claims. From all
appearances, grant reviewers at the CDC appear to have routinely signed off on these
reports with no attempts to verify the accuracy of the information. One reason may have
to do with the fact that SALF's Treasurer Douglas R. Browne was - and still is - a
management executive at the CDC.
III. Douglas R. Browne

As a result of submitting a series of annual request forms, CDC career employee Douglas
R. Browne was granted approval by the CDC Ethics Counselor to work as a member of
SALF's Advisory Board from 2004 through June 30, 2009.17 Concerns exist regarding
whether Browne's duties working for SALF exceeded the permission boundaries
approved by the CDC.
1. SALF's annual corporate reports clearly delineate between the organization's Advisory
Board members and its Executive Board members. For example, the foundation's
corporate report for 2005 identifies Browne as Treasurer and a member of the Executive
Board."
2. On SALF's annual IRS filings from 2004 to the most recent under the category of
Officers of the corporation, Browne is listed as Treasurer. 19
3. On dozens of state Articles of Incorporation filed by SALF in 2007, perhaps in all 50
states, Browne is listed as the organization's Treasurer and identified as an Officer of the
corporation"
3. According to the minutes from a January 26, 2007 meeting of SALF's board, fellow
SALF Executive Board member Rita Mullins motioned to pay Browne $40,000/year after
which Browne motioned to pay Mullins $40,000/year. Then Browne motioned for SALF
establish a retirement plan for Executive Board members. All motions were seconded and
carried."

4. According to CDC records, permission for Browne to work for SALF expired June 30,
2009. However, his name and signature appear on SALF's sworn FY08/09 AG990-IL
Annual Financial Report received by the Office of the Illinois Attorney General's
Charitable Trusts Bureau on June 10, 2010, almost a year after the CDC permission date
expired.22
5. The Watson ian Society is an organization made up of CDC Public Health Advisors.
Browne used the organization's newsletter to place want ads to hire SALF employees."

http://bit.ly/9rllcX
http://bit.ly!cYLPno
19 http://scr.bi/c9hSaT
20 http://scr,biibPmoh2
21 http://bit.ly/aWICOa
22 http://bil.lyIbFgsBu
2.1 hlIp:!Lbit.Jy/97ykaU
17

18

Questions:
- Why did a multi-million dollar Chicago-area nonprofit have as its Treasurer a career
CDC executive in Atlanta? Does Browne have a financial services background?
- SALF received millions from the CDC's National Center for Injury Prevention and
Control (NCIPC). As recently as 2002, Browne worked a grants project manager at
NCIPC.24 During his tenure at NCIPC, did Browne have any contact with SALF or any
representatives of the foundation?
- In November 2006, ABCTs first expose reported a number of falsehoods circulated by
SALF including that founder/president Carol Spizzirri was a Registered Nurse who
possessed a tour-year Bachelor of Science Degree. As discussed above, SALF used those
false claims to obtain CDC funding. In subsequent years, these and other concerns about
SALF were the subject of numerous media exposes around the country. 2:> At any time did
Browne present any of this information to the CDC?
- Why did Browne remain affiliated with the foundation years after the ABC7 exposes
and other critical news reports around the country? Months after the first three ABC7
exposes, he was listed as SALF's Treasurer on scores of state incorporation filings. For at
least three years after the ABC7 exposes, he continued to submit requests to the CDC
Ethics Counselor requesting permission to continue working for SALF.
- Why did the CDC continue to grant Browne's requests to work for SALF? Was anyone
at the CDC other than Browne aware ofSALF's very public problems?
IV. Drs. Robert and Sherlita Amlcr
According to two New York newspaper reports, two prominent former CDC employees
worked to assist SALF in obtaining funding from the CDC:26
(Dr.) Sherlita Amler, who has led Putnam (County's) Health Department since
2004, worked with Save A Life about six years ago, when she was a medical
officer with the national Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta.
At that time, SALF received afederal grant and she served as a "scientific
adviser" on the project, she said
(Dr.) Robert Amler (a Dean at New York Medical College) also worked with
SALF in 2003 when he was regional health administrator for the Us. Department
of Health and Human Services, assisting the foundation with figuring out where
to seekfederalfunding, he said. Robert Amler said recently he knew he was on
SALF's medical advisory board and praised its public service work.
This is to request that your office interview Drs. Robert & Sherlita Amler to evaluate
their relationships with SALF and the CDC's funding ofSALF.

24

25
26

http://scr.biIbZK.Xth
~ttp:llbagwellforco~.:..cQm/l!!edt~ws~.rt~Q.le~.h!m!
http://bit.lyfdAfTOb'
..
,.
".

V. SALF officials
SALF founder/president Carol J. Spizzirri is apparently now living in Southern California
with Scott Anderson, who was SALF's treasurer" prior to Douglas R. Browne assuming
that position. According to San Diego County records, they have co-owned the following
property since August 7, 2006:
1930 W. San Marcos Blvd. #285
San Marcos, CA 92078

According to a January 26, 2009 SALF filing with the Illinois Secretary of State, 28 here
are the names, titles, and addresses of the corporation's other officers:
Carol J. Spizzirri, President
t 7479 W. Dartmoor Dr.
Grayslake, IL 60030
Rita Mullins, Secretary
858 N. Virginia Lake Ct.
Palatine, IL 60067
Douglas Browne, Treasurer
2851 Evans Woods Dr.
Atlanta, GA 30340
John Donleavy, Director
255 Spruce Lane
Dorset, VT 05251
VI. Conclusion
The awarding of millions of public dollars by the CDC to the Save-A-Life Foundation
appears to have transpired with little to no oversight. Taxpayers are entitled to know
whether or not those millions were spent properly. Shou.ld your office choose to
investigate, one person who should be able to provide SALF's financial records is the
founda.tion's Treasurer, CDC Deputy Director Douglas R. Browne_29
Your consideration is greatly appreciated. In the near future I look forward to receiving
your reply. Please feel free to contact me for further information.
Sincerely.

rb)(S)

http://bit.ly/9S2VaP
http://scr.bi/dCZiWk
29 bttp;ILdirectQry,psc..gQYLbJmji~/e\lK~v.i!Sj)?Key=7m
27

2R

Cc:

Eric Holder, US Attorney General

U.S. Department of Justice
950 Pennsylvania Avenue, l\'"W
Washington. DC 20530-0001
Patrick J. Fitzgerald
United States Attorney's Office
Northern District oflllinois, Eastern Division
219 S. Dearborn St., 5th Floor
Chicago, IL 60604
Thomas R. Frieden, MD, MPH
Director, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
1600 Clifton Rd
Atlanta, GA 30333
Barry Goldberg
Assistant IL Attorney General
Charitable Trusts Bureau
100 West Randolph Street
Chicago, Il, 60601
Donald White
Public Affairs Specialist
Office of the Inspector General
Department of Health and Human Services
Room 5541 Cohen Building
330 Independence Ave. SW
Washington, DC 20201

.!"

-----

iJiI

UN"B>STllr.s
#'0$14" SlitVlC'l'

1000

IIrll I'

20201
_._---Oa!1la! 1<- ~emsco Inspector General
~t:J'
Health ancl Human SeM::es
Room 5250 CGfie!l Bu&jing
330 Inde~rlCa

Ava SW

ltfas/lillgtOfl. DC 20201

11Iillll'III,J"'11'l'II,II,I.I,1

~~~e~~~~;~E
G20G?
OCT
10
AI1 UNT

62.

$0.61

000<126"11-01

Response to OIG Complaint Re: Save-A-Life Foundation (SALF)

Action Item:

To determine if the grant funding awarded to the Save-A-Life Foundation was properly
administered.

To review the relationship between the now defunct Save-A-Life Foundation (SALF) and
CDC employee, Douglas R. Browne, who served on SALF's Board of Directors from
2004 until 2009. OIG Special Investigations Branch has requested that CDC review the
complaint and refer the matter back to OIG/SIB should any criminal violations be
revealed.

Collaborative Response on behalf of:

National Center for Injury Prevention and Control (NCIPC), Procurement and Grants
Office (PGO) and Ethics Program Office (EPO)
According to the Division of Injury Response (DIR), the Save- A-Life Foundation received two
Congressional earmarks between 2000 and 2007. DIR has no knowledge of any improper
administration of funds with regard to SALF during Mr. Browne's tenure at NCIPC. To DIR's
knowledge, the SALF project was satisfactorily concluded per standard CDC guidelines.
Research indicates that the grant awards to the Save-A-Life Foundation (SALF) were
properly administered by the Procurement and Grants Office (PGO). There were no
indicators of improprieties. We've reviewed audit reports, financial status reports and
progress reports to come to the conclusion that an allegation of improper grants
administration cannot be substantiated.
While there is evidence in the complaint which suggests that Mr. Browne served as the
foundation's treasurer during the aforementioned period of time, the CDC Ethics Program's
records only verify that Mr. Browne served on the Executive Committee. The CDC Ethics
Program records do not reveal the specific position(s) that the CDC employee held with this
outside organization.
From a Government ethics perspective, the review of the relationship between the now
defunct Save-A-Life Foundation (SALF) and CDC employee, Douglas R. Browne has
revealed no violation(s) of the criminal conflict of interest statutes found in Title 18 of the US
Code.

Response to OIG Complaint Re: Save-A-Life Foundation (SALF)

National Center for Injury Prevention and Control Response

Submitted by: Dia Taylor, Management Officer, NCIPC & Tochukwu Igbo, Issues Management
Lead, NCIPC
According to the Division of Injury Response (DIR), the Safe A Life Foundation received two
Congressional earmarks between 2000 and 2007. The FOA numbers associated with the
project are 01051 and 04164. The last action on the part of PGO was a no cost extension
given in early 2006 that would have extended to 5/2007. SALF is no longer presently funded
through CDC. Douglas Browne was the project officer of record during the latter part of the
project and no longer works for NCIPC, but is still employed with CDC. DIR has no
knowledge of any improper administration of funds with regard to SALF during Mr. Browne's
tenure at NCIPC. To DIR's knowledge, the SALF project was satisfactorily concluded per
standard CDC guidelines. Additionally, DIR has no knowledge of Mr. Browne getting
permission for outside activities during his tenure at NCIPC and requests that we contact
CDC Ethics Office for records of such, in case he received such permission after his tenure
at NCIPC.

Ethics Program Office Response

Submitted by: CDC Ethics Program Manager, Teresa Walker-Mason,

JD

ACTION ITEM:
To review the relationship between the now defunct Save-A-Life Foundation (SALF) and
CDC employee, Douglas R. Browne, who served on SALF's Board of Directors from 2004
until 2009. OIG Special Investigations Branch has requested that CDC review the complaint
and refer the matter back to OIG/SIB should any criminal violations be revealed.
** While there is evidence in the complaint which suggests that Mr. Browne served as the
foundation's treasurer during the aforementioned period of time, the CDC Ethics Program's
records only verify that Mr. Browne served on the Executive Committee. The CDC Ethics
Program records do not reveal the specific position(s) that the CDC employee held with this
outside organization.
FINDINGS:
Mr. Douglas R. Browne has been an employee of the CDC nearly 25 years. He is currently
serving in the Office for Infectious Diseases. From June 25, 2004 until June 30, 2009, Mr.
Browne was granted approval from the Deputy Ethics Counselor at CDC to serve on the
Advisory Board of SALF as an outside activity. During his service with this outside
organization, Mr. Browne submitted timely Requests for Approval of Outside Activity as
required by the HHS Supplemental Standards of Ethical Conduct found at 5 CFR 5501.106.
Also, in accordance with 5 CFR 5502.102, Mr. Browne filed the HHS Forms 521, the Annual
Report of Outside Activities, on which he reported that he was a member of the Executive
Board. His service with SALF was finally reported on his latest HHS Form 521, submitted on
February 18, 2010, on which he reported that the foundation had been dissolved and that he
would not be seeking reappointment.
Also, Mr. Browne has been identified by his program management to file the Confidential
Financial Disclosure Report (OGE 450). As required, he reported this outside position with
SALF on his OGE 450 Report as well as the travel and hotel reimbursement that he received
1

from SALF for the annual executive board meetings of the foundation. Throughout his period
of serving on the Executive Board of SALF, Mr. Brown has never reported receiving any
income from the foundation on either the HHS Form 520, the HHS Form 521 or the OGE 450
Report.
SUMMARY:
From June 2004 to June 2009, Mr. Browne was granted approvals of his multiple requests to
serve on the board of SALF. In the performance of its conflict-of-interest (COl) analysis, the
CDC Ethics Program found no evidence that had been submitted by Mr. Browne's
management that showed that Mr. Browne's official duties were related to the proposed
outside activity. In fact, the HHS Form 520 submitted on December 8, 2006, included a
statement from Mr. Browne's then immediate supervisor, Reginald Mebane, which explained
the following: "The employee has been informed that no official support or endorsement by
CDC is intended by his involvement" with SALF.
Employee Browne has fully complied with his obligation to disclose any personal interests or
affiliation with SALF.
CONCLUSION:
From a Government ethics perspective, the review of the relationship between the now
defunct Save-A-Life Foundation (SALF) and CDC employee, Douglas R. Browne has
revealed no violation(s) of the criminal conflict of interest statutes found in Title 18 of the US
Code.

Procurement and Grants Office Response

Submitted by: Curt Bryant, Team Lead - Oversight & Evaluation, Office of Policy, Procurement
and Grants Office

Dr. Timothy C. l(b)(6)

in his complaint to the HHS Office of the Inspector General (OIG),
requested that CDC grant awards to the Save-A-Life-Foundation (SALF) be reviewed for
proper administration. Furthermore he indicated that the nature of Dr. Douglas Browne's
(CDC) relationship with SALF should be investigated for a potential conflict of interest. Since
the OIG has indicated that they will not pursue an investigation, the matter has been referred
back to CDC for administrative resolution. Programmatically, all awards to SALF were
overseen by the National Center for Injury Prevention and Control (NCIPC).
Research indicates that the grant awards to the Save-A-Life Foundation (SALF) were
properly administered by the Procurement and Grants Office (PGO). There were no
indicators of improprieties. We've reviewed audit reports, financial status reports and
progress reports to come to the conclusion that an allegation of improper grants
administration cannot be substantiated.
The Save- A-Life Foundation (SALF) identified two earmarks: they received earmark awards
from CDC in 2004 and 2005 and conference grants.
Moreover, the staff of the Procurement and Grants Office has reviewed the delinquent audit
lists for fiscal years 2001 to 2006 and the organization did not appear on these lists for CDC
follow up. The lists are created by HHS by matching the grant award data base with the audit
data base to determine which grantees have not submitted audits. In audit resolution, SALF
adequately addressed the OIG's recommendations
2