Federal Reports

The VA Office of Inspector General (OIG) evaluated the merits of allegations that identified irregularities during an Health Eligibility Center (HEC) outreach mailing campaign. The complainant alleged that the HEC sent incorrect 365-day response letters to veterans with pending health care enrollment records. Specifically, VA allegedly sent letters to veterans requesting verification of military service when missing financial means test information was needed, and vice versa. Despite this purported mistake, the complainant alleged that the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) planned to declare more than 500,000 health care applications incomplete or abandoned at the end of March 2017, and would then delete the records from the Enrollment System. The OIG did not substantiate the allegation that VHA sent individuals with pending records the incorrect type of letter. The OIG independently traced and verified that the printer proofs for each batch of form letters printed and mailed by the vendor matched the letters sent to the veteran by HEC’s contracting officer. All 16 batches had printer proofs demonstrating the intended type of letter was not switched. The OIG also found that the content for both outreach form letter types was appropriate and complied with statutory requirements. The OIG also did not identify evidence that VHA has or planned to prematurely close or delete pending enrollment records prior to the required retention period. Staff conducting day-to-day enrollment activities could not remove or delete these records. Overall, the OIG did not substantiate either allegation and therefore made no recommendations for improvement.

The VA Office of Inspector General (OIG) reviewed potential mismanagement in the planning and oversight of two construction projects—a new Surgical Intensive Care Unit (SICU) and an expanded Operating Room (OR) Suite—at the Oklahoma City VA Health Care System (OKCVAHCS). The projects were scheduled for completion in February 2015 and September 2016, respectively, for a combined cost of about $18 million. The OIG concluded Veterans Integrated Service Network 16 and OKCVAHCS officials mismanaged both projects, which are behind schedule. As of January 2018, the SICU project was about 60–65 percent complete; however, the construction contractor had been paid about 93 percent of the construction portion of the project’s funds. Inadequate oversight of the project by OKCVAHCS officials contributed to widespread workmanship deficiencies. The final cost and completion date of the SICU project are unknown and at least partially dependent on the outcome of legal action initiated by the construction contractor in March 2017. The decision by OKCVAHCS officials to start the OR project prematurely resulted in conflicts between contractors working on the projects simultaneously in overlapping space. As a result, the OR project was suspended pending completion of the SICU project. Costs associated with the OR project continue to accumulate because of the delay. In May 2017, an Administrative Investigative Board convened by VA reported that an Anti-deficiency Act violation occurred because OKCVAHCS staff had removed an elevator from the SICU project and added it into the design of the OR project. This change was intended to keep the SICU project classified as “minor construction,” which is a construction project that costs under $10 million. The OIG recommended sealing SICU construction areas, implementing procedures to strengthen oversight of construction projects and recommendations by technical experts, and considering administrative action for key responsible officials.

The objective of this audit is to determine whether internal controls for issuing refunds for walk-in revenue were in place and effective at the Carmel Mountain Postal Store, San Diego, CA. The OIG Field Financial Risk Model identified the San Diego District as the second highest risk district for percent of refunds for walk-in revenue to total walk-in revenue (.388 percent) at the end of fiscal year (FY) 2017, quarter (Q) 4. The Carmel Mountain Postal Store made $60,932, or 40.1 percent, of all refunds for walk-in revenue for the San Diego District, in FY 2017, Q4. It was selected because its refund and void dollar amount exceeded $100,000, an increase of 45 percent from FY 2016.