A new outside audit on contracts linked to ex-Orange County Supervisor Andrew Do calls out former OC Health Care Agency Director Dr. Clayton Chau and former CEO Frank Kim for dismissing staff concerns over potential conflicts with an organization employing Do’s daughter.
Read more US strikes targeting Houthis killed 153 civilians in Yemen last year, Pentagon review says
Based on the report, the county’s internal auditor has referred Chau to the district attorney’s office for investigation, said Supervisor Janet Nguyen, who learned of the referrals in a meeting with internal auditor Aggie Alonso.
Also referred to county prosecutors were Bridgecreek Realty Investment Co., founded by prominent Little Saigon developer Frank Jao, and 360 Health, Nguyen said.
“It’s not a surprise as we continue to look into the next phase (of audits), we find more things. It will also allow us to put more policies and procedures into place. Nothing will be flawless … but we have to find a way to safeguard the future,” Nguyen said. “They scammed taxpayers in the most difficult time of their lives and no one’s accountable.”
The new report is the latest in a series of audits ordered by the county into contracts from January 2019 to August 2025, starting with those that Do played a part in granting. This audit reviewed 681 contracts totaling $1.7 billion.
Eventually, auditors are expected to look at contracts totaling $4.3 billion issued by the County Executive Office, Health Care Agency, OC Community Resources and Social Services Agency.
The audit by accounting firm Weaver and Tidwell said Chau waved off staff concerns over contractors linked to Do – who often said that when he checked with the supervisor, Do denied any conflict or problems.
Do is serving a five-year federal prison sentence following his guilty plea in October 2024 to accepting $550,000 in bribes to steer more than $10 million in COVID funds to certain nonprofits, primarily Viet America Society, which employed his daughter, Rhiannon.
Rhiannon Do received a high-paying job at Viet America Society plus $350,000 for a down payment on a $1 million North Tustin home. Do’s other daughter received $100,000 from Viet America Society.
Rhiannon Do was not charged; prosecutors allowed her to enter into a diversion agreement.
Besides working at Viet America Society, Rhiannon Do worked for the charity’s sister organization, Warner Wellness, a mental health clinic.
Part of the new audit explored county contracts with The Orange County Asian and Pacific Islander Community Alliance, which subcontracted with Warner Wellness. Chau pushed staff and contractors to use Warner Wellness, despite concerns by the alliance that the organization was inexperienced and by staff over a conflict between Rhiannon and Andrew Do, according to the audit.
In one case, he verbally reprimanded an HCA staff member for bringing up the issue, stating that “Supervisor Do was an attorney and he would know if there was a conflict.”
After Chau dismissed the concerns, staff went to former CEO Kim, who instead of contacting county counsel went to Do’s chief of staff, Chris Wangsaporn. Wangsaporn incorrectly told Kim that Rhiannon Do no longer worked for Warner Wellness. County counsel did not learn of the alleged conflict until months later in November 2023, the audit said.
The alliance terminated its contract with Warner Wellness in June 2024 as outcry grew over Andrew Do’s diversion of pandemic relief funds. Months earlier, Warner Wellness was fired from its contract with the Orange County chapter of the National Alliance on Mental Illness, which was operating the mental health WarmLine under a contract with the county. NAMI had hired Warner Wellness to serve Vietnamese-speaking callers.
Chau – under Do’s orders – also directed staff to pay a company that county employees suspected of double-dipping on charges for COVID testing, the Orange County Register has previously reported.
The audit found that vendor 360 Health Plan, doing business as 360 Clinic, apparently double-dipped on 1,574 claims to the county. Auditors also could not confirm that 2,646 tests costing the county $132,300 were actually done.
Health care staff had concerns about 360 Clinic, but were told to pay the company anyway, under instructions by Do.
Read more Ex-Southern Poverty Law Center official charged in broader criminal case against group, lawyer says
360 Clinic had requested payment for services denied by Blue Shield, which had launched its own investigation into the company’s billing practices.
Essentially, Blue Shield was denying all claims by 360 Clinic, citing such reasons as “charges exceed fee arrangement” or “claim lacks information for medical necessity.”
Concerned about whether to pay 360 Clinic, county health care staff sought counsel from then agency chief Chau. In an email obtained by the Orange County Register, Chau responded: “Just talked to Sup Do. We should pay 360 to fulfill our contractual obligations.”
Staff leadership sent a follow-up email to Chau, requesting confirmation that the payments should be made, but it went unanswered.
A whistleblower lawsuit filed last year accused 360 Clinic of scheming to illegally solicit kickbacks from doctors and defraud federal health programs. The suit by a former employee outlined the alleged plot to double-bill government agencies and collect kickbacks from doctors in exchange for referrals.
The COVID testing company was formed in 2020 at the height of the pandemic by Vince Tien, who ran a family-owned home nursing and hospice business, and his brother, Gary Nguyen, along with David Ngo, according to the suit.
Chau left the county in 2023 after three years at the helm of the Health Care Agency. He also served for a short time as the county’s health officer.
He could not be immediately reached Wednesday morning for comment.
Chau is credited with leading the county’s COVID response, even helping to administer vaccinations in the early days, and pushing back on blanket lockdowns, trying to balance efforts to curb the spread of the virus with helping businesses find ways to stay open and keep people employed.
He is now the chief medical officer of the National Healthcare & Housing Advisors group, according to the organization’s website. He is credited on that website with creating a number of pandemic initiatives, such as mega testing and vaccination sites and pioneering a street medicine program for the poor as part of the board of directors of CalOptima Health.
He was voted the Orange County Medical Association’s 2021 Physician of the Year.
Before coming to Orange County, Chau, who is a psychiatrist, worked as the regional executive medical director in Southern California for Providence Health System.
The audit also faulted Bridgecreek Realty Investment Co., part of the Huntington Beach-based Bridgecreek Development Group founded in 1978 by Frank Jao, who is widely credited with spurring development of Little Saigon in Westminster. The company built the Asian Garden Mall, the firm’s flagship, housing more than 300 shops.
According to the audit, Bridgecreek received $500,000 in small business funding from the county, but did not provide auditors with supporting documents on how more than half the money had been spent. Auditors also found $35,000 had been spent on previously purchased equipment for the Perfume River restaurant. Perfume River was affiliated with Peter Pham, president of Viet America Society and a defendant in the bribery case against Do.
Jao could not be immediately reached Wednesday morning for comment.
“Weaver and Tidwell’s investigations have uncovered further questionable details about contracts that Supervisor Do was involved in during his time on the board,” Third District Supervisor Don Wagner said in a statement. “I appreciate the work of Weaver and Tidwell, and our Internal Audit Office, in uncovering potential additional abuses of taxpayers’ dollars in our county government.
“The board and I want to ensure that we take all precautions to safeguard our county from this ever happening again,” he added. “I look forward to continuing with Phase 3 of the forensic audit, ensuring that we have caught every malfeasance by Supervisor Do and any of his affiliates.”
Fifth District Supervisor Katrina Foley said she intends to investigate every finding revealed in the second phase of the audit.
“This forensic audit shows why I pushed for an independent review of County contracting and stronger safeguards for taxpayer dollars,” Foley said in a statement. “The most troubling findings continue to trace back to contracts connected to Andrew Do and his network, exposing deficiencies in oversight and accountability that the Board continues to address.”
Read more Everyone wants to ‘tax the rich.’ In New York City, it’s getting complicated
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.