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You can’t fix something until you know how it’s broken. That goes for government programs just as much as your house or car. So in order to fix the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), Fifth District Congressman John McGuire wants to see where the problems are. To do that, the Virginia representative filed The VA Data Transparency and Trust Act this week. 

For several decades now, there has been limited data available from the VA, along with a lack of consistent, structured reports. Unlike the Department of Defense and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), VA does not provide Congress, researchers, or the public with reliable access to essential demographic, cost, utilization, or outcome data from the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) and Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA).

That’s where the lack of information comes in. This lack of data has prevented the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), Government Accountability Office (GAO), and other support agencies from accurately estimating the costs of proposed legislation to reform or expand VA programs or effectively evaluating the performance of existing VA programs.

“We need to ensure that the government is working efficiently and effectively,” McGuire said. “Nowhere is this more needed than within the Department of Veterans Affairs. The VA should be able to produce timely and accurate reports to Congress and respective oversight bodies to ensure that we are providing those who risked and sacrificed everything for our country the care they deserve.” 

So how does the VA Data Act work? 

The VA Data Act would require the VA to issue annual reports to Congress by providing anonymized datasets that mirror practices for Medicare and TRICARE utilization. These reports would detail how VA benefits are delivered, who is using them, and how well the system is performing—while safeguarding veterans’ privacy. 

The goal is for that to work in two ways. First, it would give Congress the tools it needs to make decisions about the agency through reports and shared data from both the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) and the Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA). Second, the idea is that these reports would make sure VA programs are not just funded but also functional and meeting the needs as intended. 

The bill is supported by current House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Chairman Mike Bost, who said more data is needed in order to fix the problems with the VA> 

“We must ensure that VA is equipped with the right data to push VA forward and improve VA programs to meet veterans’ needs where they are,” Bost said. “I want to thank my friend and fellow veteran, Rep. McGuire, for his leadership on the VA Data Transparency and Trust Act on behalf of veterans in Virginia and across the country. This commonsense modernization bill would build on House Republicans’ work to bring VA out of the Stone Age and into the New Age to provide the best care and services to the men and women who have served.”