In yet another knock on the VA, GAO has just released a report finding schedule delays and cost increases for nearly all outpatient clinic projects it reviewed.
It said that as of last January, 39 of 41 projects reviewed (with a value of $2.5 billion) experienced schedule delays, ranging from 6 months to 13.3 years, with an average delay of 3.3 years.
Most delays occurred prior to entering into a lease agreement, in part due to the Veterans Health Administration providing project requirements late or changing them or using outdated guidance, according to GAO-14-300.
It said costs also increased for all 31 of the lease projects for which VA had complete cost data, primarily due to delays and changes to the scope of a project.
VA has begun taking some actions to address problems managing clinic-leased projects, such as by establishing a Construction Review Council in April 2012. It is also in the early stages of plans to require detailed design requirements earlier in the facility-leasing process, to develop a process for handling scope changes, as well as efforts to provide Congress with more complete information on costs of proposed projects, GAO said.
It said the department is also taking steps to refine and update guidance on some aspects of the leasing process, for example the VA’s design guides, but VHA has not updated the overall guidance for clinic leasing since 2004.
The VA concurred with recommendations to update VHA’s guidance for the leasing of outpatient clinics.
