Military Health Care

The Defense Health Agency (DHA) uses its clinical adverse action process to investigate concerns about a health care provider's quality of care, and if warranted, to take action to limit or prohibit the care a provider is allowed to deliver. GAO reviewed 55 clinical adverse action cases at four selected military medical treatment facilities and found that they did not always adhere to certain requirements.

For example, in more than one-third of the cases, the facilities did not adhere to the DHA requirement to establish a deadline for the investigation of a provider. GAO also found that DHA did not always report providers within required time frames. GAO is making six recommendations, including for DHA to improve its monitoring approach and establish timeliness requirements for steps in the clinical adverse action process.