VA Disability Exams: Better Planning Needed as Use of Contracted Examiners Continues to Grow

Abstract

The Department of Veterans Affairs often uses medical exams to determine if disability benefits are warranted. This work has increasingly shifted from VA medical centers to contractors, who performed about 1.1 million of the 1.4 million exams completed in FY 2020. We testified that VA has not applied sound planning practices in transferring this work to contractors. For example, VA has not developed timelines or assessed potential risks. In addition, VA does not conduct targeted reviews to check contractor work on more complex exams, such as those for Gulf War Illness. Our recommendations address these issues.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Mar 23, 2021
Accession Number
AD1163114

Entities

People

  • Ada Nwadugbo
  • Alex Galuten
  • Almeta Spencer
  • Curtia Taylor
  • David Reed
  • Elizabeth Curda
  • Holly Dye
  • Justin Gordinas
  • Justine Augeri
  • Melissa Jaynes
  • Monica Savoy
  • Nyree R. Tee

Organizations

  • United States Government Accountability Office

Tags

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Accountability
  • Anxiety Disorders
  • Brain Injuries
  • Congress
  • Contractors
  • Contracts
  • Control Systems
  • Covid-19
  • Department Of Veterans Affairs
  • Governments
  • Health Services
  • House Of Representatives
  • Persian Gulf Syndrome
  • Risk
  • Risk Analysis
  • Training
  • Traumatic Stress Disorder
  • United States Government

Fields of Study

  • Medicine

Readers

  • Defense Acquisition Program Management
  • Rehabilitation and Prosthetic Care for Military Service Members and Veterans with Limb Loss or Disability.