Military Disability System: Preliminary Observations on Efforts to Improve Performance Metadata

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Title

  • Main Title Military Disability System: Preliminary Observations on Efforts to Improve Performance

Creator

  • Author: United States. Government Accountability Office.
    Creator Type: Organization

Publisher

  • Name: United States. Government Accountability Office.
    Place of Publication: Washington D.C.

Date

  • Creation: 2012-05-23

Language

  • English

Description

  • Content Description: Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Case processing times under the Integrated Disability Evaluation System (IDES) process have increased over time, and measures of servicemember satisfaction have shortcomings. Each year, average processing time for IDES cases has climbed, reaching 394 and 420 days for active and reserve component members in fiscal year 2011—well over established goals of 295 and 305 days, respectively. Also in fiscal year 2011, just 19 percent of active duty servicemembers and 18 percent of guard or reserve members completed the IDES process and received benefits within established goals, down from 32 and 37 percent one year prior. Of the four phases comprising IDES, the medical evaluation board phase increasingly fell short of timeliness goals and, within that phase, the time required for the military’s determination of fitness was especially troubling. During site visits to IDES locations, we consistently heard concerns about timeframes and resources for this phase of the process. With respect to servicemember satisfaction with the IDES process, GAO found shortcomings in how these data are collected and reported, such as unduly limiting who is eligible to receive a survey and computing average satisfaction scores in a manner that may overstate satisfaction. Department of Defense (DOD) officials told us they are considering alternatives for gauging satisfaction with the process."

Subject

  • Library of Congress Subject Headings: Government accountability -- United States.
  • Keyword: veterans
  • Keyword: national defense
  • Keyword: military disability system
  • Keyword: testimony

Coverage

  • Place Name: United States

Collection

  • Name: Government Accountability Office Reports
    Code: GAORT

Institution

  • Name: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
    Code: UNTGD

Rights

  • Rights License: pd

Resource Type

  • Text

Format

  • Text

Identifier

  • Report No.: GAO-12-718T
  • Accession or Local Control No: 591060
  • URL: http://gao.gov/products/GAO-12-718T
  • Archival Resource Key: ark:/67531/metadc302590
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