Orange County’s CalOptima Failed to Spend $675 Million Surplus, Violated Hiring Rules: State Auditor

A CalOptima building in Orange, Calif., on July 25, 2022. John Fredricks/The Epoch Times

A state audit conducted on CalOptima Health, Orange County’s medical insurance group for low-income residents, found the agency held back spending surplus funds on service improvement and did not follow best practices when hiring some executive positions.

Created by the county in 1993, the agency accumulated more than $1.2 billion in unrestricted funds as of June 2022, according to the state auditor’s report published May 2.