Federal Reports

We determined that U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) IT systems and infrastructure did not fully support its border security objective of preventing the entry of inadmissible aliens to the country. The slow performance of a critical system used for pre-screening travelers reduced Office of Field Operations officers’ ability to identify any passengers who may pose concerns, including national security threats. Further, incoming passenger screening at U.S. international airports was hampered by system outages that created passenger delays and public safety risks. IT systems and infrastructure also did not fully support Border Patrol and Air and Marine Operations border security activities between ports of entry. Poor systems performance and network instability resulted in processing backlogs and agents’ inability to meet deadlines for submitting potential criminal alien prosecution cases. Also, network outages hindered air and marine surveillance operations, reducing the situational awareness needed to detect inadmissible aliens and cargo approaching U.S. borders. CBP has not yet addressed these long-standing IT systems and infrastructure challenges, due in part to ongoing budget constraints. We recommended that CBP take steps to address passenger screening and border security IT systems and infrastructure challenges. We made seven recommendations and CBP concurred with all seven of our recommendations.

Beginning in 2018, the Medicare program will change the way it sets payment rates for clinical diagnostic laboratory tests (lab tests) under Part B. CMS will replace current payment rates with new rates based on current charges in the private health care market. This is the first reform in 3 decades to Medicare's payment system for lab tests. As part of the same legislation reforming Medicare's payment system, Congress mandated that OIG monitor Medicare payments for lab tests and the implementation and effect of the new payment system for lab tests. This data brief provides the third set of annual baseline analyses of the top 25 lab tests.

DOI OIG - BLM Manager Falsified Employment Information

The nursing home complaint process is a critical safeguard to protect vulnerable residents of nursing homes. CMS relies on the States' respective survey agencies to serve as the front-line responders to address health and safety concerns raised by residents, their families, and nursing home staff. State survey agencies must conduct onsite investigations within certain timeframes for the two most serious levels of complaints-those that allege serious injury or harm to a nursing home resident and require a rapid response to address the complaint and ensure residents' safety. However, previous reports by OIG and the Government Accountability Office found that States did not conduct onsite investigations within the required timeframes for some of these complaints.