Two GAO reports suggest care at VA Community Living Centers is improving overall, but the GAO says a lack of accountability for patient complaints and other issues need to be addressed.
In twin reports made publicly available on Dec. 30, the Government Accountability Office found several opportunities, some of which address a lack of transparency and efficiency, to improve care and accountability at Department of Veterans Affairs Community Living Centers, or CLCs.
The first GAO report found that the VA lacks a clear system through which veterans or loved ones can lodge complaints at CLCs. Among the findings, the GAO says, “most complaints are likely not documented” and that the VA has no structure in place to send critical complaints to top VA leadership, meaning all complaints are handled at the CLC level with no oversight.
Additionally, GAO says “that CLC residents and their representatives do not receive accurate and complete information about how to file complaints,” with the report noting that this violates the VA’s mandate and objective to be “transparent and openly accountable.”
Lastly, the investigation found that CLC staff do not always follow existing policies for accommodating complaints. The GAO does not offer specific numbers, however.
The second GAO report similarly focuses on CLC care, first noting that between 2015 and 2019, overall quality of care improved. Roughly 55% of CLCs reported fewer issues, about 10% reported the same number of issues, and the remaining 35% noted more issues.
One possible detriment to improving care: the second report says that the VA does not currently survey CLC residents about their quality of care, though the VA plans to do so in the future.
The GAO also notes that the VA does not explicitly address where VA policies supersede state mandates for quality care, possibly allowing some veterans to receive care not up to the VA’s standards.
Above all, neither GAO report indicates which CLC locations experienced more complaints or issues. However, the VA’s own public rating system—which is updated quarterly—suggests that CLCs in California are largely well-reviewed.
Of the 11 CLCs in California, all but three locations had fewer than five stars (the best score). CLCs in Martinez and San Francisco both had four stars, while the CLC in Menlo Park, CA only scored three out of five stars.
According to the VA’s own public rating system, the Menlo Park VA Community Living Center, pictured here, is California’s lowest rated CLC. (Photo: VA.gov)
Author: Christian Southards
Coming from a family with a proud military background and wanting to contribute his writing skills to a worthy cause, Christian began writing for the California American Legion in August of 2020. His father is a 25-year Army Veteran and his grandfather served in the Navy during Vietnam.
