Federal Reports

Objective: To determine whether the Social Security Administration properly processed windfall offset determinations.

The VA Office of Inspector General (OIG) conducts information security inspections to assess whether VA facilities are meeting federal security requirements. They are typically conducted at selected facilities that have not been assessed in the sample for the annual audit required by the Federal Information Security Modernization Act of 2014 (FISMA) or at facilities that previously performed poorly. The OIG selected the El Paso VA Healthcare System because it had not previously been visited as part of the OIG’s annual FISMA audit.The OIG focused on three control areas it determined to be at highest risk—configuration management, security management, and access controls. The OIG identified two deficiencies in configuration management controls, none in security management controls, and six in access controls. The configuration management deficiencies were in vulnerability management and flaw remediation. The healthcare system’s vulnerability management controls did not identify all network weaknesses, such as unsupported versions of applications, and flaw remediation controls did not ensure comprehensive patch management. Further, some vulnerabilities were not remediated within established time frames. Additionally, the software system used to report vulnerabilities to facilities was not complete and accurate. For example, it did not have host names for 16 percent of the entries.The OIG identified multiple access deficiencies: inventories of keys used by employees to gain access to buildings and rooms were not completed, reviews of physical access logs were not done quarterly as required, temperature and humidity controls were lacking in communications rooms, surveillance cameras were inoperable, water detection controls were not working, and the emergency power shutoff was not tested annually.The OIG made eight recommendations to address the noted deficiencies.

This Office of Inspector General Comprehensive Healthcare Inspection Program report describes the results of a focused evaluation of the inpatient and outpatient care provided at the VA Northern California Health Care System, which includes the Sacramento VA Medical Center, Martinez VA Medical Center, an outpatient clinic at Travis Air Force Base, and other outpatient clinics in California. This evaluation focused on five key operational areas:• Leadership and organizational risks• Quality, safety, and value• Medical staff privileging• Environment of care• Mental health (emergency department and urgent care center suicide prevention initiatives)The OIG issued seven recommendations for improvement in three areas:1. Medical Staff Privileging• Evaluation result documentation and reporting• Reprivileging recommendations based on service-specific Ongoing Professional Practice Evaluation data2. Environment of Care• Panic and over-the-door alarm testing in the inpatient mental health unit• Cleanliness, furnishings, and equipment• Properly stored and secured medications3. Mental Health• Timely follow-up for patients at risk for suicide discharged from the Emergency Department

This informational report provides general information and highlights CARES Act funding as of June 30, 2023. This informational report does not contain any findings or recommendations, and it was prepared using information obtained during the audit work and from public sources.

The USDA OIG Office of Analytics and Innovation developed a public data stroll on the broadband program in partnership with the U.S. Department of Commerce OIG called Broadband: A Data Stroll.

The Office of Inspector General completed a final action verification of all 10 recommendations in our Feb. 7, 2020, report on the Multi-Family Housing Tenant Eligibility.

To see our report, click on the link below