VA and Defense Health Care: More Information Needed to Determine If VA Can Meet an Increase in Demand For Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Services;Report to the Congress

摘要

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is caused by an extremely stressful event and can develop after the threat of death or serious injury as in military combat. Experts predict that about 15 percent of servicemembers serving in Iraq and Afghanistan will develop PTSD. Efforts by VA to inform new veterans, including Reserve and National Guard members, about the expanded availability of VA health care services could result in an increased demand for VA PTSD services. GAO identified the approaches DOD uses to identify servicemembers at risk for PTSD and examined if VA has the information it needs to determine whether it can meet an increase in demand for PTSD services. GAO visited military bases and VA facilities, reviewed relevant documents, and interviewed DOD and VA officials to determine how DOD identifies servicemembers at risk for PTSD, and what information VA has to estimate demand for VA PTSD services. GAO recommends that VA determine the total number of veterans receiving VA PTSD services and provide facility-specific information to VA medical facilities and Vet Centers. VA concurred with GAOs recommendation and plans to aggregate data on the total number of veterans it treats for PTSD at VA facilities. DOD concurred with GAOs findings and conclusions.