Inspection of the VA Regional Office, Detroit, Michigan

OIG conducted this inspection to evaluate how well the Detroit VARO accomplishes its mission of providing veterans with access to high-quality benefits and services. VARO staff did not accurately process 31 (52 percent) of 60 disability claims we reviewed. We sampled and reviewed claims we considered at higher risk of processing errors, thus these results do not represent the overall accuracy of disability claims processing at this VARO. Specifically, 60 percent of the 30 temporary 100 percent disability evaluations reviewed were inaccurate because of a lack of training and controls related to future medical reexaminations. Errors in processing 43 percent of 30 traumatic brain injury claims occurred because staff used insufficient medical examination reports. Managers did not ensure staff fully completed SAO or addressed Gulf War veterans’ entitlement to mental health treatment. Staff provided adequate outreach to homeless veterans; however, VBA needs a measure to assess its homeless outreach program.