H.R. 4626 would require the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to contract with one or more private entities to conduct an extensive assessment of its health care system at least once every 10 years. That audit would evaluate the VA health care system in 16 areas including patient demographics, staffing and productivity, and business processes. The bill also would require the private entity to use data that has already been collected during other evaluations when feasible. The private entity would complete the initial assessment by the end of 2025 and submit a report on its findings and recommendations.
Under the Veterans Access, Choice, and Accountability Act of 2014, VA spent $66 million for a private entity to conduct an in-depth assessment of similar scope, which included audits of several of the areas identified in the bill. On the basis of those costs, accounting for savings from using existing data, and adjusting for inflation, CBO estimates that completing the assessment would cost $56 million over the 2022-2026 period.
The bill also would require that VA publish the assessment and submit to the Congress a report on the feasibility of the recommendations. Using information about similar reports, CBO estimates that satisfying those requirements would cost less than $500,000 over the 2022-2026 period. Such spending would be subjected to the availability of appropriated funds.
