This report shares the Statement of Elizabeth H. Curda, Director, Education, Workforce, and Income Security before the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, House of Representatives.
“In a March 2018 report, GAO made four recommendations to address planning gaps in the Department of Veterans Affairs’ (VA) November 2017 plan for changing its appeals process for disability compensation claims. Since then, VA has updated its appeals reform plan and taken steps to address aspects of these recommendations, but further steps could enhance its readiness for implementation: • Address all legally required elements. VA’s November 2017 plan did not address one and only partially addressed four of 22 elements required by the Veterans Appeals Improvement and Modernization Act of 2017 (Act); GAO recommended VA fully address all 22. As of November 2018, VA addressed one element related to projecting productivity and took steps to partially address the other four. VA is still missing information the agency needs to certify that it has the resources needed to successfully implement appeals reform.”
“Articulate plans for performance monitoring and assessment. GAO recommended VA clearly articulate how it will monitor and assess the new appeals process relative to the legacy process, including, for example, specifying timeliness goals for the five new appeals options, and measures for decision accuracy in processing appeals. As of November 2018, VA officials stated their intention to use productivity, timeliness, accuracy, and veteran satisfaction metrics to assess the new versus the legacy appeals processes. However, VA has yet to specify a complete set of goals or measures for monitoring and assessing the relative efficacy of the new process or articulate detailed steps and timeframes for establishing them…” Read the full testimony here.
Source: Planning Gaps Could Impede Readiness for Successful Appeals Implementation – December 12, 2018. GAO.
