Merging the Military Health System (MHS) and the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) into a Single Governance Structure
Abstract
The Department of Defense (DoD) and Veterans Affairs (VA) health care systems share many missions and characteristics. Both are large, complex organizations with a combined Fiscal Year (FY) 2008 budget of over 76 billion dollars. The two systems employ a total of over 300,000 personnel, and treat nearly 13.5 million designated beneficiaries at more than 1,600 sites worldwide. Both face the challenges of health care systems everywhere: new practices, techniques, and tools; changing demographics; aging infrastructure; and increasing costs. Yet despite their similar missions, challenges, and legislative mandates to work together, the actual amount of cost savings produced by DoD/VA sharing agreements remains minuscule when compared to their total annual budgets. The history of DoD/VA sharing is replete with examples of failed attempts and difficulties getting the two large organizations to combine effectively and efficiently. This paper proposes that, until a single management or governance structure for both systems exists, created and mandated by law, the extent and success of collaboration efforts between the DoD and VA health care systems will remain limited by existing public laws and subject to the inherent bureaucracy of the two organizations. The author proposes governance models and a recommended course of action.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Apr 07, 2008
- Accession Number
- ADA493670
Entities
People
- William B. Grimes
Organizations
- United States Army War College