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Veterans

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Open Recommendations

Veterans Employment: VA Should Address Human Capital Needs and Other Issues in High-Tech Training
GAO-25-106876
Sep 30, 2025
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4 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Department of Veterans Affairs The Secretary of Veterans Affairs should develop and implement a plan and related procedures for assessing the agency's current and future human capital needs to effectively implement the VET TEC program. This plan and related procedures could also assist the agency in administering future pilots, as applicable. (Recommendation 1)
Open
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
Department of Veterans Affairs The Secretary of Veterans Affairs should develop and implement a written, systematic process to help prevent, identify, and recoup overpayments from VET TEC training providers, as appropriate. This could include documenting criteria aligned with the VET TEC milestone payment process to be applied before payments are made. In cases in which a payment has already been issued, such procedures could flag payments (1) for which the training provider subsequently submitted updated information and (2) that must be recovered from preferred providers because the veteran did not obtain meaningful employment. (Recommendation 2)
Open
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
Department of Veterans Affairs The Secretary of Veterans Affairs should clearly communicate that participants can use the GI Bill School Feedback Tool to provide ongoing feedback about the VET TEC program. For example, VA could modify the tool by (1) revising the introductory language to ensure veterans are aware the tool is not exclusive to schools or training providers eligible to receive GI Bill benefits, (2) adding language to clarify which program(s) a veteran is submitting feedback about, or (3) adding a check box for any non-GI Bill program and pilot programs, as well as check boxes for "other" or "unknown" programs. (Recommendation 3)
Open
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
Department of Veterans Affairs The Secretary of Veterans Affairs should develop and implement a plan to analyze ongoing feedback it receives from VET TEC participants, including feedback VA receives through the GI Bill School Feedback Tool, to inform program implementation. This analysis could be incorporated into any future evaluation of the program. (Recommendation 4)
Open
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.

VA Disability Benefits: Additional Oversight and Information Could Improve Quality of Contracted Exams for Veterans
GAO-25-107483
Sep 03, 2025
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4 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Department of Veterans Affairs The Secretary of VA should ensure that MDEO develops and uses written procedures to validate the accuracy of its financial incentive calculations, including data entry and scoring of performance measures. (Recommendation 1)
Open
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
Department of Veterans Affairs The Secretary of VA should ensure that MDEO recalculates all financial incentives since 2022 and documents and corrects any inaccurate penalties and payments. (Recommendation 2)
Open
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
Department of Veterans Affairs The Secretary of VA should ensure that MDEO conducts Special Focused Reviews of contracted exams for complex claims (traumatic brain injury, military sexual trauma, and Gulf War Illness) on a biennial basis, in accordance with its procedures. (Recommendation 3)
Open
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
Department of Veterans Affairs The Secretary of VA should ensure that MDEO identifies and uses a mechanism to collect and address direct feedback from examiners on the quality of exams. (Recommendation 4)
Open
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.

VA Acquisitions: Leadership Accountability and Savings Goals Needed to Improve Purchasing Efficiency
GAO-25-107398
Sep 02, 2025
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6 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Department of Veterans Affairs The Secretary of Veterans Affairs should ensure that the Deputy Secretary, as the category management senior accountable official, establishes performance requirements to hold category managers accountable for fulfilling their respective category management responsibilities established in VA policy. (Recommendation 1)
Open
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
Department of Veterans Affairs The Secretary of Veterans Affairs should ensure that the Deputy Secretary, as the category management senior accountable official, establishes the category management council, or designates an existing entity to perform the duties of the category management council, as described in VA policy to guide the implementation, coordination, and oversight of VA's category management initiative. (Recommendation 2)
Open
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
Department of Veterans Affairs The Secretary of Veterans Affairs should ensure that the Deputy Secretary, as the category management senior accountable official, and in coordination with the Chief Acquisition Officer and Senior Procurement Executive, identifies the category management training required for specific roles, including category managers, category leads, and officials identified as having requirements responsibilities, and ensures those officials complete required training. (Recommendation 3)
Open
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
Department of Veterans Affairs The Secretary of Veterans Affairs should ensure that the Deputy Secretary and category managers establish category-specific goals for cost avoidance and budget savings, and track progress toward these goals. (Recommendation 4)
Open
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
Department of Veterans Affairs The Secretary of Veterans Affairs should ensure that category managers assess the availability of, or feasibility of making available, item-level data on prices paid, utilization, and cost avoidance to facilitate use of such data to track cost avoidance within the department's common spending categories. (Recommendation 5)
Open
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
Department of Veterans Affairs The Secretary of Veterans Affairs should ensure that the Deputy Secretary, as the category management senior accountable official, ensures that category managers, in conjunction with heads of contracting activities, develop and maintain vendor management plans for their respective categories, that identify mission-critical functions and associated contractors and include strategies to address supply base risks. (Recommendation 6)
Open
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.

VA Vet Centers: Opportunities to Improve Survey of Counselor Productivity Expectations
GAO-25-107631
Jul 31, 2025
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2 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Department of Veterans Affairs The Under Secretary for Health should ensure the RCS Chief Officer analyzes the potential for nonresponse bias in the Counselor and Client Engagement Survey and, as appropriate, develops strategies to increase the likelihood of representative survey findings. (Recommendation 1)
Open
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
Department of Veterans Affairs The Under Secretary for Health should ensure the RCS Chief Officer modifies the Counselor and Client Engagement Survey to clarify that counselors and directors should provide feedback on both the time management and the encounters productivity expectations for counselors. (Recommendation 2)
Open
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
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