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Mr. Chairman, in our testimony last year, BVA
described how VA has failed to maintain its capacity to provide
specialized services to disabled veterans as mandated by the Eligibility
Reform Act. Unfortunately, little has changed during the past
year to improve this situation.
A. FLAWED CAPACITY REPORT DATA
The number of beds available for the provision
of comprehensive residential blind rehabilitation continues to
be lower than those available on October 9, 1996. As we reported
last year, one facility arbitrarily closed 15 beds and eliminated
the FTEE supporting those beds. However, this facility persisted
in reporting no reductions and insisted they complied with the
law. When confronted with the action, the facility finally admitted
it was not operating the number of beds it was reporting to VA
Headquarters (VAHQ) for the Capacity Report prepared by VAHQ for
submission to Congress. Similarly, another facility reported four
more beds than it was actually operating and for three years had
refused to provide accurate information for the previously mentioned
Capacity Report. Finally, and only after being confronted by the
Chief Network Office (CNO), the facility complied. Despite false
reporting by the two facilities, no meaningful action has been
taken to rectify the loss of capacity.
In an effort to report no reduction in national
capacity, the Under Secretary for Health (USH) approved a proposal
for a new 15 bed BRC for the West Palm Beach, Florida facility.
While we appreciate the new program and the improved access this
will afford our blinded veterans in Florida, we are concerned.
The facilities that reduced capacity are not being held accountable
for their actions. BVA maintained throughout the VHA reorganization
that the decentralized management decision approach would not
be effective with respect to the specialized programs. The special
disabilities program identified in the Eligibility Reform Act
are national in scope. They should not be subject to local interpretation
or changes without the approval of the USH. In the case of the
second facility mentioned previously, no action has been taken
to restore the beds arbitrarily closed or the FTEE to support
those beds. Consequently, substantial waiting lists and times
persist at that facility. A blinded veteran must wait more than
one year for admission to Computer Access Training (CAT) and from
six to eight months for the basic blind rehabilitation program.
BVA also reported last year the existence
of significant flaws in data VA used to support its contention
of maintaining capacity. VHA eventually admitted that problems
existed in data collection and a series of meetings were held
to identify the problem areas and the actions needed to correct
them. Following the General Accounting Office (GAO) report on
Capacity, the USH has appointed a new VAHQ individual charged
with the responsibility of preparing the Capacity Report and insuring
that the data contained in the report is accurate. We are encouraged
that greater emphasis is being placed on the data collection problem
but continue to be skeptical. Given the state of Information Technology
currently being utilized in VHA, the likelihood of improved data
is slim. We anticipate a gradual improvement in the quality of
the data as the new Capacity Czar develops and implements alternative
methods of collecting relevant data. Mr. Chairman, VHA has taken
critical steps to correct similar problems identified in the Spinal
Cord Injury (SCI) and substance abuse programs. Much of the decision-making
authority has been re-centralized and any reductions in beds or
FTEE must receive USH approval. BRS should be treated in a like
manner if these chronic problems are to be corrected.
Problems with data collection must be resolved
as it will enable VA to accurately capture appropriate FTEE for
the provision of comprehensive blind rehabilitation. Currently,
numerous inappropriate FTEE are being charged to blind rehab.
It is imperative that essential FTEE directly involved in the
provision of comprehensive services must be identified and captured
if an accurate picture of the status of blind rehabilitation is
to be obtained. This is not rocket science Mr. Chairman and it
still has not been made a priority in VAHQ. The decentralized
management authority has negatively affected other specialized
services provided to blinded veterans. Specifically, the positions
local or network managers have attempted to either eliminate or
substantially alter, including VIST Coordinators and BROS positions.
In almost every instance, BVA and the VA Blind Rehabilitation
Service (BRS) have found it necessary to involve the CNO to reverse
such negative decisions. Once again, these local decisions are
being driven not by veterans’ needs but cost. Blinded veterans
have experienced significant disruptions in service or in some
case a total lack of service.
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