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Veterans' Benefits: Improving the Integrity of VA's Unemployability Compensation Program

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Report Type Reports and Testimonies
Report Date Sept. 21, 1987
Report No. HRD-87-62
Subject
Summary:

In response to a congressional request, GAO reviewed the Veterans Administration's (VA) Unemployability Compensation Program to determine whether: (1) veterans receiving unemployability benefits were reporting their earnings to VA as required; and (2) access to tax information would enable VA to better administer the program.

GAO found that: (1) 90 percent of the veterans receiving unemployability benefits failed to report their earnings; (2) veterans received potential overpayments of over $10 million during 1984 and 1985; (3) VA rating boards used different criteria in determining marginal earnings, which resulted in unequal and inconsistent eligibility determinations for unemployability benefits; (4) although access to tax information could improve payment accuracy, granting VA access to any tax information would raise privacy concerns; and (5) VA did not have the medical evidence it needed to evaluate veterans for employment in 75 percent of its files.

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