Federal Reports

MEMORANDUM FOR DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE LEAD INSPECTOR GENERAL

The Federal Information Security Modernization Act of 2014 (FISMA) directs Inspectors General to conduct an annual evaluation of the agency information security program. FISMA, Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) establish information technology (IT) security guidance and standards for Federal agencies. We conducted this evaluation to assess the overall effectiveness of the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s information security program, assess their compliance with Federal guidance, and respond to OMB reporting questions for the fiscal year 2021 annual assessment. The OIG has determined that the contents of this report would not be appropriate for public disclosure and has therefore limited its distribution to selected officials.

Our objective was to evaluate the U.S. Postal Service’s management of city letter carrier routes. The Postal Service’s mission is to provide prompt, reliable, and efficient mail and package shipping services to all Americans. In fiscal year (FY) 2020, the Postal Service’s City Delivery Operations delivered over 77.7 billion mail pieces on more than 140,000 city routes. Mail is delivered on these routes by more than 171,000 city letter carriers and over 34,000 city carrier assistants.City Delivery Operations consist of two components – office and street operations. A city letter carrier route is comprised of both assigned office duties, such as casing mail, as well as street duties, like collecting and delivering mail to customers. Management should review each city carrier route’s baseline workload (e.g., assigned delivery points and volume) annually to ensure it is equivalent to a standard 8-hour workday. To maintain an 8-hour workday, delivery supervisors monitor efficiency and adjust for changes in workload. They use several methods including street observations, minor route adjustments, and mail count and route inspections. Supervisors record these results in the Delivery Operation Information System (DOIS), which allows them to manage routes and letter carrier assignments daily.Since FY 2015, the Postal Service experienced a significant change in the mail mix, resulting in a 16 percent decrease in First-Class Mail volume and a 62 percent increase in package volume. Even prior to the dramatic package growth due to the COVID-19 pandemic in FY 2020, package volume had increased steadily over the previous ten years, except in FY 2019 when volume flattened due to competition. As a result, city letter carriers delivered fewer letters and flats and more packages, which are often larger and take more time to deliver. With about 80 percent of a letter carrier’s day spent on the street, supervisors must monitor and record any changes in the volume profile or other workload factors to ensure that each route can be accomplished in an 8-hour workday.For this audit, the OIG reviewed nationwide city letter carrier route data and conducted a review of 12 judgmentally selected delivery units in 11 districts from the four areas.

The former Secretary remained involved in a land development project and did not disclose his involvement when questioned by an ethics official.

The VA Office of Inspector General (OIG) conducted a healthcare inspection at the Martinsburg VA Medical Center (facility) in West Virginia to assess allegations of failure to schedule a Care in the Community (CITC) COVID Priority 1 cardiology consult within Veterans Health Administration requirements, and delays in CITC consult scheduling caused by inadequate CITC staffing.The OIG substantiated that a COVID Priority 1 CITC cardiology consult was not scheduled within 30 days of the clinically indicated date. The OIG determined that the consult was amongst a backlog of approximately 5,000 various specialty CITC consults that were unscheduled. Additionally, facility CITC staff failed to create action plans to improve failed metrics; maximize use of available reports to manage consults; conduct clinical reviews of unscheduled consults; and develop a process to review potential adverse events occurring because of delayed consults. The OIG also learned that confusion surrounding priority and urgency status categories resulted in workarounds by other departments to avoid further delays in patient care.The OIG substantiated that inadequate staffing within the facility’s CITC Service caused delays in the scheduling of CITC consults. Contributing factors included reports of frequent staff turnover, outdated local CITC processes and lack of training, staff absences, and lack of alternative work options during the COVID-19 pandemic.The OIG made one recommendation to the Veterans Integrated Service Network Director related to monitoring the facility’s CITC Improvement Action Plans, progress, timelines, and next steps.The OIG made seven recommendations to the Facility Director related to CITC Improvement Action Plans, COVID Priority 1 report reviews, implementation of a clinical review process for unscheduled COVID Priority 1 consults and consults in which the patient died prior to being scheduled, evaluation of backlog management strategies, review of appointment scheduling occurring in departments outside CITC, and ensuring adequate CITC staffing levels.