Reports
Search reports, investigative results, and agency plansShowing 1 - 10 of 29 results
Department of Veterans Affairs OIG
Audit of Community Care Consults during COVID-19
During COVID-19, VHA’s Office of Community Care (OCC) took steps to ensure veterans continued to have expanded access to health care in the community, as required by the VA MISSION Act of 2018. OCC issued policies to VA facilities to postpone nonurgent appointments and offer alternatives to in-person care, such as telehealth. The VA Office of Inspector General (OIG) conducted this audit to determine whether VHA effectively managed community care consults for routine appointments during the pandemic. The OIG found that routine community care consults were unscheduled for an average of 42 days...
Department of Veterans Affairs OIG
Comprehensive Healthcare Inspection of Facilities' COVID-19 Pandemic Readiness and Response in Veterans Integrated Service Networks 1 and 8
This Office of Inspector General (OIG) Comprehensive Healthcare Inspection Program (CHIP) report provides a focused evaluation of Veterans Integrated Service Network (VISN) 1 and 8 facilities’ COVID-19 pandemic readiness and response. This evaluation focused on emergency preparedness; supplies, equipment, and infrastructure; staffing; access to care; community living center patient care and operations; facility staff feedback; and VA and VISN 1 and 8 vaccination efforts. The OIG has aggregated findings on COVID-19 preparedness and responsiveness from routine inspections to ensure prompt...
Department of Homeland Security OIG
Lessons Learned from FEMA’s Initial Response to COVID-19
The objective was to determine how effectively FEMA supported and coordinated Federal efforts to distribute personal protective equipment (PPE) and ventilators in response to the COVID-19 outbreak. We determined that FEMA did not have reliable data to inform allocation decisions and ensure accurate adjudication of resource requests, it did not have a process to allocate the limited supply of PPE, and FEMA’s strategic documents did not clearly outline roles and responsibilities to lead the Federal response. We made three recommendations that FEMA improve the reliability of WebEOC, formally...
Department of Homeland Security OIG
DHS Needs to Enhance Its COVID-19 Response at the Southwest Border
The objective of this review was to determine to what extent the Department of Homeland Security has implemented COVID-19 measures for migrants at the southwest border. We reported that U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) does not conduct COVID-19 testing for migrants who enter CBP custody and is not required to do so. Instead, CBP relies on local public health systems to test symptomatic individuals. According to CBP officials, as a frontline law enforcement agency, it does not have the necessary resources to conduct such testing. For migrants that are transferred or released from CBP...
Department of Homeland Security OIG
CBP Needs to Strengthen Its Oversight and Policy to Better Care for Migrants Needing Medical Attention
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) needs better oversight and policy to adequately safeguard migrants experiencing medical emergencies or illnesses along the southwest border. CBP concurred with all three of our recommendations, which when implemented, should improve medical attention and procedures for migrants at the southwest border
Department of Veterans Affairs OIG
Comprehensive Healthcare Inspection of Facilities' COVID-19 Pandemic Readiness and Response in Veterans Integrated Service Network 19
This Office of Inspector General (OIG) Comprehensive Healthcare Inspection Program (CHIP) report provides a focused evaluation of Veterans Integrated Service Network (VISN) 19 facilities’ COVID-19 pandemic readiness and response. This evaluation focused on emergency preparedness; supplies, equipment, and infrastructure; staffing; access to care; community living center patient care and operations; facility staff feedback; and VA and VISN 19 vaccination efforts. The OIG has aggregated findings on COVID-19 preparedness and responsiveness from routine inspections to ensure prompt dissemination of...
Department of Health & Human Services OIG
CMS's Controls Related to Hospital Preparedness for an Emerging Infectious Disease Were Well-Designed and Implemented but Its Authority Is Not Sufficient for It To Ensure Preparedness at Accredited Hospitals
Assess whether the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) designed and implemented effective internal controls related to hospital preparedness for emerging infectious diseases such as COVID-19.
Department of Veterans Affairs OIG
Use and Oversight of the Emergency Caches Were Limited during the First Wave of the COVID-19 Pandemic
The OIG assessed how effectively VA managed its emergency caches during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020. These caches contain a standard supply of drugs and medical supplies, including some personal protective equipment, for use during a public health emergency. The review team found that use and oversight of the emergency caches were limited. Only nine of 144 medical facilities activated their emergency caches during the review period (February through June 2020). Among the reasons they were not used included medical facility directors reporting supplies were not needed...