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VA Services and Retirement
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$1 billion+ |
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Reform VA Acquisition Management
The VA has historically used procurement policies that were "outdated, disjointed, and difficult for contracting officers to use." Over time the VA has also lacked adequate data systems, relying on flawed data to identify necessary medical and surgical items, for instance. While exact cost savings are difficult to calculate, VA has obligated nearly $4 billion to one program that did not receive proper oversight. Permalink
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$37-45 million |
H.R.6489 - Social Security Reform Act of 2016 (Rep. Johnson, R-TX) |
Improve oversight on Social Security payments
The Veterans Administration has paid out billions in benefits to deceased veterans. Improving system oversight so that mistakes like this do not happen is extremely necessary, and could save between $37 and 45 million (based on just one sample). However, as of April 2019, GAO has VA health care and federal IT acquisitions on its High Risk List, as the VA lacks IT systems to support critical processes and does not implement related federal law, making oversight difficult. Permalink
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$5.8 million over two years |
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Improve Patient Health with Better Chronic Disease Management
Long-term savings could be achieved by implementing certain programs to address chronic disease. For instance, helping patients educate and monitor their own conditions can help prevent worse breakouts in the future and slow down the costs. Coordinating care between different providers could also improve patients' short and long-term health. Permalink
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$1 million+ |
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Reform the VA mailing system
The outdated systems that the VA uses increase the likelihood of human error and potentially driven up costs. The VA reported spending about $355 million on 200 million pieces of mail in 2016. Unlike many other industries that are becoming more efficient as technology develops, the VA is using old systems and has different reporting requirements across the country, making mail recording difficult to standardize. Permalink
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$39.6 billion over 10 years |
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Award unemployability benefits only to those who are of working age
VA individual unemployability payments are a supplemental benefit made available if a veteran cannot maintain substantial employment because of a service-related disability, not age or other factors. These supplemental benefits could be made only to veterans who are of working age, while veterans who are between the ages of 65 and 67, depending on the year they were born, could collect from other sources of benefits. Permalink
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Up to $7 billion |
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Reform Tricare for Life
Tricare costs the Pentagon over $50 billion per year providing almost free healthcare to all military retirees and their families for life, and costs are expected to climb up to $65 billion annually. Minor adjustments to fee scales for these services would help to slow the cost explosion that the VA is expected to have in the next decade. Recent proposals, for instance, have suggested raising costs by $2.50 per month for individuals or $5 a month for families. While the plan overall remains contentious, there has been consensus among veterans' advocates to tie future increases to the rate of inflation – and an understanding from Pentagon leadership that the current path and balance sheets are unsustainable. Permalink
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$26 billion over 10 years |
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Narrow eligibility for veterans’ disability compensation
The GAO has identified a list of medical conditions that are likely not caused or aggravated by military service. CBO estimates that in 2015, VA paid 716,000 veterans a total of $3.7 billion to compensate for seven of these medical conditions. Most civilian employers do not cover employees for all medical problems that may have emerged during employment, and reducing or restricting disability compensation to those veterans whose injuries and conditions are related to service could save billions while still compensating those with service-related disabilities. Permalink
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$139 billion over 10 years |
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Consolidate retirement and disability compensations programs
Until 2003, it was not possible for retirees to receive both full retirement benefits and disability compensation; instead, they had to choose between DOD retirement annuity or VA disability benefits.
However, two classes of retirees -- those with combat-related disabilities and those who retire with at least 20 years of military service and receive a VA disability rating of at least 50 percent -- have since been receiving combat-related special compensation (CRSC) or concurrent retirement and disability pay (CRDP), respectively. These payments make up for the difference in the VA offset.
Ending these payments would more accurately reflect the intent of the original legislation while avoiding duplicative payments and saving billions. Permalink
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Reform VA Acquisition Management 
