The Department of Veterans Affairs improperly awarded $10.8 million in incentives to central office senior executives according to a report released Thursday by the VA’s Office of Inspector General.
The OIG found the award of critical skill incentive payments to nearly all Veterans Health Administration and Veterans Benefits Administration central office executives lacked adequate justification and were inconsistent with both PACT Act and VA policy.
“This was due, in part, to breakdowns in leadership and controls at multiple levels of VA,” the report reads.
CSIs are a new recruitment and retention tool authorized by the PACT Act, which significantly expanded access to VA health care and benefits for veterans exposed to toxic substances.
CSIs are meant for an employee who “possesses a high-demand skill or skill that is at a shortage,” to help VA meet a projected increase in staffing requirements. In total, VA awarded the incentives to 182 senior executives in amounts ranging from nearly $39,000 to over $100,000 each.
VA Undersecretary for Health Dr. Shereef Elnahal approved 148 of the incentives while VA Undersecretary of Benefits Joshua Jacobs signed off on 34 of the awards.
In September 2023, VA announced it had erroneously awarded the incentives and canceled the payments, notified Congress and requested OIG to review the matter.
“There did not appear to be a valid retention concern supporting these incentives,” the report found,” the report reads.
The missteps “clearly had the potential to damage the confidence placed in VA by veterans, employees, taxpayers, and members of Congress,” the report said.
Elnahal told the OIG that when he approved the bonuses, he did not know that more than 150 senior executives would receive them.
“I think if I had known that, my management instinct would be to get the same level of justifications together and the costs,” he said, according to the report.
VA Secretary Denis McDonough has directed the bonuses be paid back. He has also asked the VA’s Office of Accountability and Whistleblower Protection to determine if disciplinary action should be brought against those who were involved.
VA concurred with the OIG’s two findings and eight recommendations and provided acceptable action plans and completion timelines. The OIG will monitor VA’s progress until sufficient documentation has been received to close the recommendations as implemented.
Reach Julia LeDoux at Julia@connectingvets.com.
