Veterans Affairs: Data Needed to Help Improve Decisions Concerning Veterans' Access to Burial Options
Abstract
VA estimates that approximately 10 percent of the veterans in the United States, or over 2.1 million veterans, did not have reasonable access to burial options in a veterans cemetery at the end of fiscal year 2013. In 2012, VA announced an initiative to improve access to burial options for veterans living in rural areas. Subsequently, in Public Law 113-6, Congress mandated that VA develop a strategy to serve the burial needs of rural veterans. The law also mandated GAO to review VA s strategy to ensure that it included all of the elements required by the law. This report includes, among other things, an evaluation of the extent to which (1) NCA s methodology identifies whether veterans have reasonable access to burial options and supports future cemetery location decisions, and (2) VA s rural burial strategy includes the eight elements required by law. GAO reviewed NCA s methodology for estimating the percentage of veterans who have reasonable access to burial options for fiscal year 2017. GAO also reviewed VA s rural burial strategy, and spoke with agency officials responsible for developing and implementing the rural burial strategy.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Sep 01, 2014
- Accession Number
- ADA608939
Entities
People
- Amie Steele
- Bonita Anderson
- Joanne Landesman
- John Mingus
- John Wren
- Maria Storts
- Sabrina Streagle
- Terry Richardson
Organizations
- United States Government Accountability Office