Better DOD and VA Oversight Can Help Ensure More Accurate, Consistent, and Timely Decisions for the Traumatic Injury Insurance Program

What GAO Found

Although VA data show that 63 percent of servicemembers with traumatic brain injury were approved for Traumatic Injury Protection Under Servicemembers' Group Life Insurance (TSGLI), the actual approval rate may be lower, and DOD and VA lack assurance that claim decisions are accurate, consistent, and timely within and across the branches of service. VA’s data show that 520 of the 821 servicemembers who filed TSGLI claims for traumatic brain injury received benefits. However, the actual approval rate may be lower because VA does not include all denials for traumatic brain injury in its data. In addition, DOD and VA officials told us there is no systematic quality assurance review process to ensure that claim decisions are accurate and consistent within and across the services. Finally, DOD and VA lack reliable data on how long it takes the services to make decisions on traumatic brain injury claims.

Click here for rest of this in-depth report.