JEFFERSON CITY — Less than a month after Missouri Gov. Mike Parson said the state was not paying a Virginia-based consulting company working on the state’s response to the pandemic, his administration inked a no-bid contract with the firm that has paid out more than a half-million dollars.
State payroll records show the McChrystal Group has received $522,000 in federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act funding from the state in an unorthodox working relationship that began in April.
In early May, after first reported on the consultant, Parson told reporters that the Missouri Foundation for Health would cover up to $600,000 in expenses for work by the company, which was founded by retired four-star Army Gen. Stanley McChrystal.
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The governor made no mention that the state was poised to take over the payments on May 31, using the emergency federal aid as a funding source.
Unlike other spending of coronavirus aid money for goods and services, such as the purchase of medical supplies, the purpose of the contract is less clear.
Parson administration spokesman Chris Moreland said the firm was hired to provide a management system and structure to facilitate problem-solving between various state agencies and the governor’s Cabinet.

Gen. Stanley McChrystal, seen here in Marjah, Afghanistan, on March 7, 2010. (AP Photo/Dusan Vranic)
“A unified, whole of government response is needed in coordination with the Missouri health care system,” Moreland told the Post-Dispatch. “The specialized capabilities McChrystal Group provides to our response are critical to continued success.”
Kelli Jones, a spokeswoman for the Republican governor, said the company is in line to continue being paid nearly $250,000 a month for its work.
“As we continue to face COVID-19 challenges, Missouri must sustain a coordinated, unified response to ensure Missourians are safe,” Jones said.
McChrystal served as the chief commander of U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan until he was ousted in 2010.
Among the reasons for his departure were derisive remarks by him and his aides about former Vice President Joe Biden, the Democratic nominee for president.
The company did not respond to an email inquiry from the Post-Dispatch.
Most of the McChrystal Group’s clients are private companies. As part of its approach to the pandemic, the company says it can help organizations “get the most out of your teams during these trying and uncertain times.”
Bob Hughes, president of the Missouri Foundation for Health, also did not respond to a request for comment about the funding switch.
Moreland said all state agencies participate in forums coordinated by the company to hear new information, analysis and updates on ongoing actions.
“The McChrystal Group makes no policies — only provides the structure and management to allow decision-makers to determine policies. The McChrystal Group does not generate data — the group helps pull together Missouri-based data and information to share with analysts and policy-makers,” Moreland said.
Parson’s opponent in the November election, Democratic Auditor Nicole Galloway, slammed the spending.
“Today, all we have to show for it is rising infections, delayed school reopenings, a positivity rate over 10% and a spot on the White House Coronavirus Task Force’s ‘Red Zone,’” Galloway said.
Missouri has spent over $1.5 billion of the more than $2 billion it has received as part of the federal aid to battle COVID-19.
While much of the money has gone to counties to help local governments combat the pandemic, the state has doled out the aid for everything from meals and lodging for emergency workers to hand sanitizer and masks.
Among the more recent purchases was a $418,000 lease for a warehouse in Jefferson City to store 11,000 pallets of personal protective equipment. The lease will run for a year.