Federal Reports

The Office of Inspector General (OIG) conducted a healthcare inspection at the Colmery-O’Neil VA Medical Center (Facility) in Topeka, Kansas, regarding an anonymous complainant’s allegations that physicians were practicing beyond their clinical privileges and expertise; physicians failed to seek assistance from specialists, thus placing patients at risk; and a nurse practitioner did not have physicians’ help or supervision for the inpatient medical service. The OIG did not substantiate that physicians were practicing beyond their clinical privileges and expertise. However, two providers were granted clinical privileges that exceeded the Facility’s operative and Intensive Care Unit complexity levels. Although the OIG did not substantiate that physicians failed to seek assistance from specialists, specialty care clinics had only one provider to cover each area. The OIG determined that specialty services’ consults were ordered when medically necessary, patient transfers were timely and clinically indicated, and inpatients were transferred if specialists were unavailable. The OIG did not substantiate that a nurse practitioner covered the entire inpatient medical service without help or supervision. Additionally, the OIG determined that the VA Eastern Kansas Health Care System’s bylaws had not been updated to reflect VA’s 2017 amendment to its medical regulations permitting full practice authority for Advanced Practice Registered Nurses. The Facility did not meet Veterans Health Administration surgical complexity requirements for surgeons or anesthesia service. Facility staff could not provide lists of after-hours on-call social workers, mental health staff, specialists, and radiologists. Ultrasound scans were not available during all emergency department hours. The OIG made six recommendations related to providers’ clinical privileges; updating bylaws; requirements for after-hours surgeon staffing, pre-operative risk and anesthesia assessments, and anesthesia service coverage; specialty care consults’ timeliness; on-call specialists’ availability; and timely emergency department specialty resources.

This report responds to a request from the U.S. House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform to review measures the U.S. Postal Service has implemented regarding opioid safety preparedness. Specifically, the congressional inquiry focused on Postal Service procedures, training, and communications related to employee exposure risks to synthetic opioids and opioid overdose medication. Our objective was to assess measures the Postal Service has implemented to prepare its workforce for the risks posed by shipments of synthetic opioids.

Florence Crittenton Services of Orange County, Inc. (Crittenton), located in Fullerton, California, met most of the applicable safety standards for the care and release of children in its custody. However, Crittenton released some children to sponsors without conducting all required background checks, and some Unaccompanied Alien Children (UAC) case files were missing documentation to verify that Crittenton met certain safety standards. In addition, the numbers of released children listed in Crittenton’s quarterly performance progress reports were not readily verifiable for accuracy.

An Amtrak Foreman was terminated from employment on June 18, 2018, after a hearing officer found that he violated the company’s Standards of Excellence by failing to notify the company of a drug or alcohol-related conviction for engaging in the distribution of, possession with intent to distribute, or importation of a controlled substance.

The OIG investigated allegations that a contractor was improperly involved in a Bureau of Land Management (BLM) construction project and had a conflict of interest during multiple contract awards related to that project. We also investigated allegations that a BLM supervisor circumvented contracting rules to steer awards to the contractor.We confirmed the allegations against both the contractor and the BLM supervisor. We found that the contractor improperly contributed to the statements of work for contracts during the design phase of the project and influenced the award of those contracts. He then subcontracted with the companies that received the awards.We found that the BLM supervisor ignored guidance from BLM contracting personnel to compete the design phase of the construction and allowed the contractor to influence awards of contracts. When contracting personnel objected, the supervisor paid the contractor with a Government purchase card to circumvent controls.The United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Nevada declined prosecution of this matter and the BLM supervisor has left the Department.