Inspection of the VA Regional Office New Orleans, LA

We evaluated the New Orleans VA Regional Office (VARO) to see how well it accomplishes its mission. We found the VARO staff did not accurately process 42 (47 percent) of 90 disability claims reviewed. We sampled claims we considered at higher risk of processing errors, thus these results do not represent overall disability claims processing accuracy at this VARO. Specifically, 15 of 30 temporary 100 percent disability evaluations were inaccurate, generally because management did not prioritize processing of claims requiring reduced evaluations. VARO staff processed 10 of 30 traumatic brain injury (TBI) claims incorrectly due to ineffective training on processing such complex cases. VARO staff also incorrectly processed 17 of 30 special monthly compensation (SMC) and ancillary benefits claims due to a lack of training and emphasis on addressing all ancillary issues. Nine of 11 Systematic Analyses of Operations (SAOs) were incomplete due to inadequate oversight. VARO staff also did not timely or accurately complete 12 of 30 benefit reduction cases due to a lack of training and priority on addressing this workload. We recommended the VARO Director develop and implement a plan to ensure staff timely process benefit reductions, review the 329 temporary 100 percent disability evaluations remaining from our inspection universe and take appropriate action, and monitor the effectiveness of training on processing TBI claims and SMC and ancillary benefits. The Director should implement a plan to ensure SAOs contain all required elements, including timeframes for implementing the recommendations. The Director should also ensure staff receive training on how to properly complete SAOs and process proposed benefit reductions. The VARO Director concurred with all recommendations.