VA's Office of Inspector General (OIG) released its semiannual report to Congress on May 26, outlining the agency's activities from Oct. 1, 2019 through March 31, 2020.

The 112-page report can be downloaded here. Among the highlights:

• OIG reported nearly $867 million in "monetary impact" over the six-month span, with more than half that total coming from "better use of funds" and the rest stemming from fines, cost savings, and other means. With a budget of just more than $83 million, OIG claimed a 10-to-1 return on investment.
  
  
• The office made 142 arrests, referred 158 cases to the Department of Justice for prosecution, and referred 29 cases to state or local authorities.
  
  
• OIG fielded 14,747 hotline contacts over the six-month span, opening 895 cases and closing 686. It issued 531 corrective actions or administrative sanctions relating to the claims and reported a 36% "substantiation of allegations" rate. (You can contact the OIG at 800-488-8244 or at www.va.gov/oig.)
  
  
• In 19 published reports during the six-month period, the agency offered 118 recommendations. These included a report on privacy concerns involving the Veterans Benefits Administration's Records Managament Center as well as the improper use of telehealth questionnaires in determining benefit eligibility.

Read the full report here.