Reports

The Protect.HHS.gov ecosystem and the U.S. Healthcare COVID-19 portal are both critically important systems contributing to the Federal pandemic response. The data collected by these systems are utilized in the response to COVID-19 by, for example, tracking the movement of the virus, identifying potential stresses in the health care delivery system, and provide information about the distribution of supplies. Without proper cybersecurity, the integrity and availability of the data are at risk and the impact to public health efforts could be significant if decisionmakers cannot rely on COVID-19 data from States, communities, and hospitals. We will determine whether HHS has implemented foundational cybersecurity controls to ensure the integrity and availability of Protect.HHS.gov and the U.S. Healthcare COVID-19 portal.

CDC has stated that beneficiaries with serious underlying medical conditions, such as end-stage renal disease (ESRD), are at higher risk for severe illness from COVID-19. Regardless of the current pandemic, dialysis patients are at high risk of infection because of weakened immune systems, coexisting conditions such as diabetes, and treatments requiring frequent use of catheters or insertions of needles to access the bloodstream. ESRD facility conditions for coverage regarding infection control and emergency preparedness are defined in 42 CFR 494 Subpart B. On March 30, 2020, CMS issued a revised memorandum providing guidance for infection control and prevention of COVID-19 in dialysis facilities. We will interview corporate officers from the three ESRD service companies covering more than 75 percent of CY 2018 Medicare reimbursements and 71 percent of dialysis clinics. Our objective is to determine whether ESRD facilities implemented additional infection control and emergency preparedness procedures in accordance with CMS and CDC guidance to safeguard high risk ESRD beneficiaries during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act and the Paycheck Protection Program and Health Care Enhancement Act appropriated $175 billion for the Provider Relief Fund (PRF) to support health care providers affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. In April 2020, the Health Resources and Services Administration began distributing the funds through general distributions to Medicare providers based on 2018 net patient revenue and targeted distributions for certain provider types (e.g., providers in areas particularly impacted by COVID-19, skilled nursing providers, and providers in rural areas). Providers such as hospitals may be eligible for PRF payments from the general and targeted distributions. We will select for audit a statistical sample of providers that received general and/or targeted distributions. Our objective is to determine whether providers that received PRF payments complied with certain Federal requirements, and the terms and conditions for reporting and expending PRF funds.

Section 3710 of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act directs the Secretary to increase the weighting factor that would otherwise apply to the assigned diagnosis-related group by 20 percent for an individual who is diagnosed with COVID-19 and discharged during the COVID-19 public health emergency period. We will audit whether payments made by Medicare for COVID-19 inpatient discharges billed by hospitals complied with Federal requirements.

The objective of the evaluation is to determine whether the IRS effectively used its telework program to reduce the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on IRS operations.

Assess the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on IRS customer service operations and evaluate the development of the IRS’s comprehensive customer service strategy. 

The Defense Intelligence Agency Office of the Inspector General initiated an evaluation of the Agency's use of Reserve military intelligence capabilities across the Defense Intelligence Enterprise.  Our objective is to assess the effectiveness of Agency’s use of Reserve military intelligence forces for the delivery and integration of Reserve capabilities across the Defense Intelligence Enterprise in peacetime and during crisis and contingency operations.  Through this evaluation effort, we will examine the use of Reserve military intelligence capabilities during the COVID-19 pandemic.

In response to the Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence and Security's initiative to professionalize the analysis workforce within the Department of Defense (DoD), the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) Office of the Inspector General initiated an evaluation to assess the Agency's effectiveness in serving as the All-Source Analyst Professional Certification Program management lead.  We will assess the effectiveness of the DIA’s efforts to administer, implement, and oversee the program in accordance with DoD, Intelligence Community, Agency, and national accreditation policies and standards. As a part of this evaluation effort, we will also examine the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on DIA's ability to provide the DoD analysis workforce with continuous opportunities to attain the Certified Defense All-Source Analyst-I professional credential.

The National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) Office of Inspector General (OIG) is conducting an evaluation of the NRO’s implementation of section 3610 authorized by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act.  The objectives are to evaluate the NRO’s implementation of section 3610 authorized by the CARES Act and to identify preliminary impacts to NRO mission.

As required by section 8L of the Inspector General Act of 1978, as amended, the Inspectors General for the Department of Defense, Department of State, and USAID work together to report quarterly to Congress on every overseas contingency operation’s progress and corresponding oversight activities.  Starting in the second quarter of fiscal year 2020, these quarterly reports include reporting on the COVID-19 outbreaks in Afghanistan, Syria, Iraq, and the Philippines, as well as the U.S. government response to them.

In accordance with the CARES Act, Section 3610, “Federal Contractor Authority,” March 27, 2020 we will evaluate DIA’s implementation of Section 3610. Our objective is to determine whether DIA’s contractor reimbursements were appropriate and governed by policies and procedures that met the Act’s requirements.

The objective is to assess whether American Samoa used Coronavirus Relief Fund payment proceeds in accordance with 601(d) of the Social Security Act, as amended, (42 U.S.C. 801(d)), Treasury's Coronavirus Relief Guidance For State, Territorial, Local, and Tribal Governments, and Treasury's Coronavirus Relief Fund Frequently Asked Questions. 

The Families First Coronavirus Response Act provided $64 million in additional resources for COVID-19 response activities through the Indian Health Service (IHS) and requires coverage, without cost-sharing, for COVID-19 testing for American Indians/Alaska Natives, who receive health services. The Paycheck Protection Program and Health Care Enhancement Act provided $750 million for COVID-19 testing and testing-related services through IHS. From these two Acts, funding for COVID-19 testing to urban Indian organizations total $53 million and funding to IHS Federal health programs and Tribal health programs total $611 million. We will audit IHS's allocation and utilization of funding to urban Indian organizations, IHS Federal health programs and Tribal health programs. Specifically, our objectives will be to determine whether: (1) IHS allocated the COVID-19 funds to ensure that testing supplies were available to meet community needs, and (2) COVID-19 funds were used by IHS and grantees for testing, including other testing-related services, in accordance with Federal requirements.

 This work will provide details of the effectiveness of CMS controls over its Accelerated and Advance Payment Program (AAP) payments to providers and payment recovery. We will obtain data and meet with program officials to understand CMS's eligibility determination process for AAP payments and the steps CMS will have taken to recover such funds in compliance with the CARES Act and other Federal requirements. The objectives of our work will be to determine whether CMS made AAP payments to eligible providers and implemented controls to recover the AAP payments in compliance with the CARES Act and other Federal requirements. We will also evaluate a select group of providers to determine whether they were eligible for AAP payments, and their efforts to repay CMS in compliance with the CARES Act and other Federal requirements.