Oklahoma Administrative Code › Title 310 - Oklahoma State Department of Health › Chapter 410 - WIC › Subchapter 3 - Vendor Management › Part 9 - WIC VENDOR COMPLIANCE AND SANCTIONS › Section 310:410-3-52 - WIC vendor sanctions

Current through Vol. 41, No. 20, July 1, 2024
Any Class A or B violation shall subject the vendor to
					 reimburse the department for any overcharges, charges for items not received by
					 WIC participants, and monies paid for products not authorized as WIC approved
					 foods.
(1) Any Class A violation shall
				  constitute grounds for disqualification of authorization to the WIC Program. If
				  the department determines that disqualification of the vendor would result in
				  inadequate participant access, the department shall impose a civil money
				  penalty in lieu of disqualification. The length of each disqualification is
				  listed below.
(A) Permanent disqualification:
				  A vendor convicted of trafficking in food benefits or selling firearms,
				  ammunition, explosives, or controlled substances (as defined in section 102 of
				  Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 802) in exchange for
				  food benefits.
(B) Six-year
				  disqualification:
(i) One incidence of buying
				  or selling food benefits for cash (trafficking); or
(ii) One incidence of selling firearms,
				  ammunition, explosives, or controlled substances as defined in
				  21 U.S.C.
				  802, in exchange for food benefits.
(C) Three-year disqualification:
(i) One incidence of sale of alcohol or
				  alcoholic beverages or tobacco products in exchange for food benefits;
				  or
(ii) A pattern of claiming
				  reimbursement for sale of an amount of a specific WIC food item which exceeds
				  the store's documented inventory of that WIC food item for a specific period of
				  time; or
(iii) A pattern of
				  charging participants more for WIC food than non-WIC customers or charging
				  participants more than the current shelf or agreement price; or
(iv) A pattern of receiving, transacting
				  and/or redeeming food benefits outside of authorized channels, including the
				  use of an unauthorized vendor and/or an unauthorized person; or
(v) A pattern of charging for WIC food not
				  received by the participant, proxy, or department representatives; or
(vi) A pattern of providing credit or
				  non-food items, other than alcohol, alcoholic beverages, tobacco products,
				  cash, firearms, ammunition, explosives, or controlled substances as defined in
				  21 U.S.C.
				  802, in exchange for food benefits.
(D) One-year disqualification: A
				  pattern of providing unauthorized food items in exchange for food benefits,
				  including charging for supplemental foods provided in excess of those listed on
				  the food benefit.
(E)
				  Disqualification period equal to SNAP disqualification:
(i) Permanent disqualification,
				  disqualification or suspension from participation in the USDA SNAP, or
				  imposition of a civil money penalty by SNAP;
(ii) Such sanction shall not be subject to
				  administrative or judicial review under the WIC program.
(F) Voluntary withdrawal or non-renewal of
				  agreement:
(i) The department shall not
				  accept voluntary withdrawal of the vendor from the Program as an alternative to
				  disqualification for violations listed in this section, but shall enter the
				  disqualification on the record; or
(ii) The department shall not use non-renewal
				  of the vendor agreement as an alternative to disqualification.
(G) Civil Money Penalty (For each
				  violation subject to a mandatory sanction):
The department shall impose a Civil Money Penalty in lieu
					 of WIC Program disqualification if such disqualification of the vendor would
					 result in inadequate WIC participant access. The Civil Money Penalty is set
					 forth in 7 CFR
					 246.12(l)(x)(C) and
					 7 CFR
					 3.91(b)(3)(v).