Federal Reports

At the request of Senator Bill Nelson, OIG conducted a healthcare review to address questions regarding VA suicide prevention efforts and suicide data collection:• How do you know if VA’s suicide prevention programs are working and what percent of veterans who die by suicide have been under the care of the Veterans Health Administration (VHA)?• Are data on suicides turned over to mental health providers in real time; what risk factors associated with higher veteran suicides are being explored in-depth, and by whom; and what ways can be identified to gather more reliable suicide data?We found that VHA tracked suicide rates of veterans and other VHA users by matching suicide deaths from the National Death Index; state-based reporting and Suicide Prevention Applications Network initiatives may not have included the full population of veteran suicides; and the VA/Department of Defense (DOD) Suicide Data Repository was developed. We found that real time data was not available to mental health providers in all states; VHA implemented a predictive analytics risk model; and non-VA researchers analyzed military service members’ social media posts for mental health status changes/suicidal ideation to determine suicide risk factors. We found that Veterans Integrated Service Network (VISN) 2 Center of Excellence and VISN 19 Mental Illness Research, Education and Clinical Center had over 20 suicide prevention research studies and projects; reliability of suicide data was contingent on usage of clear, standardized terminology; training was critical for persons responsible for completing the medical portion of the death certificate; and VHA and DOD Suicide Prevention program staff were developing a sharing agreement to establish a routine method to transfer data. This OIG review was informational and had no recommendations.

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The OIG used data analytics to identify offices with lost or stolen stamp stock shipments. We identified three expenses totaling $27,429 related to stamp stock shipments for the Bensalem, PA, Post Office and the Croydon Post Office, a small post office whose stamp stock is shipped to the Bensalem Post Office, between May 1, 2016, and April 30, 2017.

The Office of the Inspector General audited the adequacy of the Tennessee Valley Authority's (TVA) process to surplus and dispose of information technology (IT) equipment due to the risk of (1) protected information disclosure and (2) environmental compliance and regulatory compliance violations associated with the surplus and disposal of IT equipment. We found weaknesses with TVA's policies, procedures, and process to surplus and dispose of IT equipment, including (1) surplus IT equipment was not properly sanitized, tracked, and processed; (2) badge access control reviews of areas holding surplus IT equipment were not being performed as required by policy; and (3) processes for the surplus and disposal of cathode ray tubes do not address environmental regulations to prevent release of the lead into the environment. TVA management agreed with our findings and recommendations.

OIG administers the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit (MFCU or Unit) grant awards, annually recertifies the Units, and oversees the Units' performance in accordance with the requirements of the grant. As part of this oversight, OIG conducts periodic reviews of all Units and prepares public reports based on these reviews. These reviews assess the Units' adherence to the 12 MFCU performance standards and compliance with applicable Federal statutes and regulations.