Why GAO Did This Study
“VHA operates one of the largest health care systems in the nation with an estimate of $81 billion for providing care to over 6.9 million veterans in fiscal year 2019. Recently, VHA has repeatedly requested that Congress provide supplemental funding due to higher-than-expected needs for care.”
“GAO was asked to examine how VHA allocates funds and monitors use of these funds. This report examines (1) VHA’s processes for allocating general purpose and specific purpose funds to its VISNs and medical centers and (2) the extent to which VHA monitors the use of these funds…”
What GAO Found
“The Department of Veterans Affairs’ (VA) Veterans Health Administration (VHA) has developed processes for allocating health care funds to its regional Veterans Integrated Service Networks (VISN) and medical centers. Each year, VHA allocates about two-thirds of funds for general patient care—known as general purpose funds—using two, main allocation models. The first model allocates general purpose funds to each VISN and a second model then allocates these funds to the medical centers that report to each VISN. These models are based on patient workload—that is, the number and type of veterans served and the complexity of care provided. VHA allocates its remaining one-third of funds—known as specific purpose funds—to program offices that manage various, specific programs, such as community care and prosthetics. Program offices, in turn, allocate these funds directly to medical centers using different methodologies, including a workload-based model for community care. GAO found the following weaknesses in VHA’s processes for allocating funds…”
What GAO Recommends
“GAO is making five recommendations including that VHA use workload data from the most recently completed fiscal year to allocate funds; take steps to review adjustments; revise existing guidance to require VISNs to provide information on adjustment amounts and the reasons for doing so; and require VISNs to provide explanations for redistributions of allocated funds between VISNs and medical centers and then review the amounts redistributed. VA concurred with four recommendations and concurred in principle with one recommendation.” Read the full 39-page report here.
Source: Veterans Health Care: VA Needs to Improve Its Allocation and Monitoring of Funding – September 23, 2019. GAO.
