Audit finds Indianapolis VA with high error rate

INDIANAPOLIS — A federal audit of the Veterans Affairs Regional Office in Indianapolis found a high rate of errors in processing disability claims.

The auditors found that 41 percent of the cases they reviewed were handled improperly. The Indianapolis Star reports that in some cases veterans were overpaid, while other errors resulted in payments or approvals of benefits being delayed.

A similar audit this year of 16 VA regional offices nationwide found an error rate of 23 percent.

Indianapolis VA office director Michael Stephens says in the report that his office concurred with the findings, which called for additional training and other internal steps such as changes to its mail system to address the problems.