Human Capital
Actions Needed to Better Track and Provide Timely and Accurate Compensation and Medical Benefits to Deployed Federal Civilians
GAO-09-562, Jun 26, 2009
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The Department of Defense (DOD) and other executive agencies increasingly deploy civilians in support of contingency operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. Prior GAO reports show that the use of deployed civilians has raised questions about the potential for differences in policies on compensation and medical benefits. GAO was asked to compare agency policies and to identify any issues in policy or implementation regarding (1) compensation, (2) medical benefits, and (3) identification and tracking of deployed civilians. GAO reviewed laws and agency policies; interviewed officials responsible for governmentwide guidance at the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) and for policy at six selected agencies, including DOD and State; reviewed all workers' compensation claims filed by deployed civilians from January 1, 2006 through April 30, 2008 at the Department of Labor; and conducted a generalizeable survey of civilians deployed from the six agencies during this same period.
Although policies concerning compensation for deployed civilians are generally comparable across agencies, GAO found some issues that affect the amount of compensation--depending on such things as the agency's pay system or the employee's grade/band--and the accuracy, timeliness, and completeness of this compensation. For example, two civilian supervisors with comparable salaries who deploy under different pay systems receive different overtime pay because the overtime rate is determined by the employee's pay system and grade/band level. While a congressional subcommittee asked OPM to develop a benefits package for all deployed civilians to war zones and to recommend enabling legislation, OPM has not yet developed such a package or provided legislation. Also, implementation of some policies may not always be accurate or timely. For example, GAO estimates that approximately 40 percent of the deployed civilians in its survey reported experiencing problems with compensation--including not receiving danger pay--in part because they did not know where to go for assistance. Moreover, in January 2008, Congress gave agency heads discretion to apply the death gratuity provision retroactively for deaths connected with operations in Iraq or Afghanistan on or after October 7, 2001. At the time of GAO's review, agencies had not yet issued formal policy to implement this benefit. Although agency policies on medical benefits are similar, GAO found some issues with medical care following deployment, workers' compensation, and post deployment medical screenings that affect the benefits of deployed civilians. Specifically, while DOD allows its treatment facilities to care for "non-DOD" civilians following deployment in some cases, the circumstances are not clearly identified in guidance and some agencies were unaware of DOD's policy. Civilians who deploy also may be eligible for medical benefits through worker's compensation. GAO's analysis of 188 such claims filed with Labor revealed some significant processing delays resulting in part from lack of clarity about the documentation required to support claims. Without clear information on what documents to submit to support a claim, applicants may continue to experience delays. Further, while DOD requires medical screening before and following deployment for civilians, State requires medical screenings only before deployment. Prior GAO work found that documenting the medical condition of deployed personnel before and following deployment was critical to identifying conditions that may have resulted from deployment. Each agency provided GAO with a list of deployed civilians, but none had fully implemented policies to identify and track these civilians. DOD, for example, had procedures to identify and track deployed civilians but concluded that its guidance was not consistently implemented. While the other agencies had some ability to identify and track civilians, some had to manually search their systems. Thus, agencies may lack critical information on the location and movement of personnel, which may hamper their ability to intervene promptly to address emerging health issues, as GAO has previously reported.
Status Legend:
Status will change from "In process" to "Open," "Closed - implemented," or "Closed - not implemented" based on our follow up work.
- In Process
- Open
- Closed - implemented
- Closed - not implemented
Recommendations for Executive Action
Recommendation: To help ensure that civilians deployed in support of operations in Iraq and Afghanistan or future contingencies receive comparable types of compensation and benefits such as overtime and locality pay, regardless of deploying agency, the Director of OPM should develop and oversee an executive agency working group to review existing compensation to develop an action plan or make legislative recommendations if necessary and appropriate to address differences, such as overtime and locality pay, in the types of compensation provided to civilians deployed to Iraq, Afghanistan, or future contingencies.
Agency Affected: Office of Personnel Management
Status: Open
Comments: Agency 60 day letter indicates that OPM is continuing to work with appropriate executive agencies and that proposed legislation will be recommended. The letter does not however contain any timeframes for submitting the proposed legislation.
Recommendation: To help ensure that civilians deployed in support of operations in Iraq and Afghanistan or future contingencies receive the full compensation and benefits to which they are entitled, the Secretary of Labor should revise the application materials for Federal Employees' Compensation Act claims to make clear what documentation applicants must submit with their claims.
Agency Affected: Department of Labor
Status: Open
Comments: Received Agency's 60 day letter that reiterated the commitment to review documentation requirements for the traumatic injury claims. Did not establish any milestones for completion of this action.
Recommendation: To help ensure that civilians deployed in support of operations in Iraq and Afghanistan or future contingencies receive the full compensation and benefits to which they are entitled, the Secretary of Labor should set a clear timeframe for issuing implementing guidance concerning the death gratuity granted by section 1105 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2008, Public Law Number 110-181.
Agency Affected: Department of Labor
Status: Closed - Implemented
Comments: On August 18, 2009, the Department of Labor published the final interum rule for the implementation of the death gratuity authorized in section 1105 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2009. This action made the provisions of this section effective immediately. This action meets the intent of our recommendation to set a timetable for publishing the implementing guidance.
Recommendation: To help ensure that civilians deployed in support of operations in Iraq and Afghanistan or future contingencies receive the full compensation and benefits to which they are entitled, the Secretary of Defense should direct the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness to establish an ombudsman program to help ensure that deployed civilians obtain accurate information and receive such compensation and medical benefits in a timely manner.
Agency Affected: Department of Defense
Status: Open
Comments: DOD stated in comments to our report that it has established civilian human resource offices/capabilities in both Iraq and Afghanistan to assist deployed civilians with compensation and benefits issues. In addition, in written responses to questions from the House Government Reform Committee, DOD stated that DOD Directive 1404.10 established the responsibilities and requirements of the CEW Readiness unit's case managers. The guide states that case managers guide and direct all deployed civilians to available resources, provide intervention in problem claims, and work with the Service component's Injury Compensation Program Administrators? (ICPA) to help injured employees navigate the Office of Worker's Compensation Program (OWCP) claims process. However, our review of the identified directive shows that it did not clearly address the responsibilities and requirements for the CEW Readiness Unit case managers.
Recommendation: To help ensure that civilians deployed in support of operations in Iraq and Afghanistan or future contingencies receive the full compensation and benefits to which they are entitled, the Secretary of Defense should direct the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness to clarify guidance governing the availability of medical care at military treatment facilities for federal civilians following deployment and formally advise other agencies that deploy civilians of the circumstances under which care will be provided.
Agency Affected: Department of Defense
Status: Open
Comments: DOD has posted information related to the medical treatment to which deployed federal civilians are entitled on its expeditionary workforce website. This information includes clarification of its policy for treatment of non-DOD civilians such as (1)a form for requesting additional medical care from MTFs following deployment and (2)a training briefing concerning medical care for deployed civilians which has a couple of examples of compelling circumstances, and frequently asked questions concerning medical care for deployed civilians.
Recommendation: To help ensure that civilians deployed in support of operations in Iraq and Afghanistan or future contingencies receive the full compensation and benefits to which they are entitled, the Secretary of Defense should direct the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness to establish standard procedures to ensure that returning civilians complete the required post- deployment medical screenings.
Agency Affected: Department of Defense
Status: Open
Comments: DOD has clearly identified the requirements for the post deployment health assessment on its Civilian Expeditionary Workforce webpage which contains a document related to DOD Benefits for Deployed Civilians. This document states that (1) "Deployment out-processing will also include a visit to the MTF?s TRICARE Operations and Patient Administration (TOPA) Flight, to include a review of the post-deployment health assessment (PDHA) DD Form 2796,? and (2) the Unit Deployment Manager is responsible for notifying deployed civilians when they are due to complete the post deployment health reassessment.
Recommendation: To help ensure that civilians deployed in support of operations in Iraq and Afghanistan or future contingencies receive the full compensation and benefits to which they are entitled, the Secretary of Defense should direct the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness to establish mechanisms to ensure that the Department's policies to identify and track deployed civilians are implemented.
Agency Affected: Department of Defense
Status: Open
Comments: No information is available from DOD concerning actions to implement this recommendation.
Recommendation: To help ensure that civilians deployed in support of operations in Iraq and Afghanistan or future contingencies receive the full compensation and benefits to which they are entitled, the Secretary of State should develop post-deployment medical screening requirements for civilians deployed under the purview of the Department of State.
Agency Affected: Department of State
Status: Open
Comments: State Department's 60 day letter indicates that State will take action on this recommendation in 2010, but does not include a specific implimentation date or completion date.
Recommendation: To help ensure that civilians deployed in support of operations in Iraq and Afghanistan or future contingencies receive the full compensation and benefits to which they are entitled, the Secretaries of Agriculture, Homeland Security, and State, the Attorney General, and the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development should establish ombudsman programs, or for agencies deploying small numbers of civilians, focal points with human capital expertise, to help ensure that deployed civilians receive the compensation and medical benefits to which they are entitled.
Agency Affected: Department of Agriculture
Status: Open
Comments: USDA indicated in its 60-day letter that an ombudsman had been selected and reported for duty on October 26, 2009.
Recommendation: To help ensure that civilians deployed in support of operations in Iraq and Afghanistan or future contingencies receive the full compensation and benefits to which they are entitled, the Secretaries of Agriculture, Homeland Security, and State, the Attorney General, and the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development should establish ombudsman programs, or for agencies deploying small numbers of civilians, focal points with human capital expertise, to help ensure that deployed civilians receive the compensation and medical benefits to which they are entitled.
Agency Affected: Department of Homeland Security
Status: Open
Comments: No information is available from DHS concerning actions to implement this recommendation.
Recommendation: To help ensure that civilians deployed in support of operations in Iraq and Afghanistan or future contingencies receive the full compensation and benefits to which they are entitled, the Secretaries of Agriculture, Homeland Security, and State, the Attorney General, and the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development should establish ombudsman programs, or for agencies deploying small numbers of civilians, focal points with human capital expertise, to help ensure that deployed civilians receive the compensation and medical benefits to which they are entitled.
Agency Affected: Department of State
Status: Open
Comments: The State Department's 60 day letter does not establish a completion date for this action.
Recommendation: To help ensure that civilians deployed in support of operations in Iraq and Afghanistan or future contingencies receive the full compensation and benefits to which they are entitled, the Secretaries of Agriculture, Homeland Security, and State, the Attorney General, and the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development should establish ombudsman programs, or for agencies deploying small numbers of civilians, focal points with human capital expertise, to help ensure that deployed civilians receive the compensation and medical benefits to which they are entitled.
Agency Affected: Department of Agriculture
Status: Open
Comments: Received Agency's 60 day letter that identified milestone for completing recommendation. Received update on 12/4/09, action on target for 3/15/10 completion
Recommendation: To help ensure that civilians deployed in support of operations in Iraq and Afghanistan or future contingencies receive the full compensation and benefits to which they are entitled, the Secretaries of Agriculture, Homeland Security, and State, the Attorney General, and the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development should establish ombudsman programs, or for agencies deploying small numbers of civilians, focal points with human capital expertise, to help ensure that deployed civilians receive the compensation and medical benefits to which they are entitled.
Agency Affected: United States Agency for International Development
Status: Open
Comments: USAID's written comments to our report and the 60 day letter indicate that USAID currently has a person serving in the capacity of an ombudsman and that no further action is necessary. The 60 day letter further states that that individual is expected to continue to serve in that capacity for the foreseeable future subject to conditions in the critical priority countries.
Recommendation: To help ensure that civilians deployed in support of operations in Iraq and Afghanistan or future contingencies receive the full compensation and benefits to which they are entitled, the Secretaries of Agriculture, Homeland Security, and State, the Attorney General, and the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development should establish policies and procedures to accurately identify and track standardized information on deployed civilians, such as location specific movements in theater for any future medical issues related to their deployment.
Agency Affected: Department of Agriculture
Status: Open
Comments: USDA indicated in its 60-day letter that the Interagency Provincial Affairs office in Afghanistan and the Office of Provincial Affairs in Iraq track all civilians working on PRTs. In addition, USDA uses its deployment spreadsheet, travel authorizations, approvals, vouchers, and country clearance cables to track deployed civilians.
Recommendation: To help ensure that civilians deployed in support of operations in Iraq and Afghanistan or future contingencies receive the full compensation and benefits to which they are entitled, the Secretaries of Agriculture, Homeland Security, and State, the Attorney General, and the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development should establish policies and procedures to accurately identify and track standardized information on deployed civilians, such as location specific movements in theater for any future medical issues related to their deployment.
Agency Affected: Department of Homeland Security
Status: Open
Comments: No information is available from DHS concerning actions to implement this recommendation.
Recommendation: To help ensure that civilians deployed in support of operations in Iraq and Afghanistan or future contingencies receive the full compensation and benefits to which they are entitled, the Secretaries of Agriculture, Homeland Security, and State, the Attorney General, and the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development should establish policies and procedures to accurately identify and track standardized information on deployed civilians, such as location specific movements in theater for any future medical issues related to their deployment.
Agency Affected: Department of State
Status: Open
Comments: The State Department's 60 day letter does not establish a completion date for this action, but it does recognize the difficulty of implementing this recommendation.
Recommendation: To help ensure that civilians deployed in support of operations in Iraq and Afghanistan or future contingencies receive the full compensation and benefits to which they are entitled, the Secretaries of Agriculture, Homeland Security, and State, the Attorney General, and the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development should establish policies and procedures to accurately identify and track standardized information on deployed civilians, such as location specific movements in theater for any future medical issues related to their deployment.
Agency Affected: Department of Justice
Status: Open
Comments: Received Agency's 60 day letter with milestones identified for completion of recommendation. Received status update on 12/4/09, action on target for 3/20/10 completion
Recommendation: To help ensure that civilians deployed in support of operations in Iraq and Afghanistan or future contingencies receive the full compensation and benefits to which they are entitled, the Secretaries of Agriculture, Homeland Security, and State, the Attorney General, and the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development should establish policies and procedures to accurately identify and track standardized information on deployed civilians, such as location specific movements in theater for any future medical issues related to their deployment.
Agency Affected: United States Agency for International Development
Status: Open
Comments: USAID did not concur with our recommendation in its written comments to our report. The 60 day letter however, describes specific actions to consolidate current sources of information on deployed civilians into a single data source.