Privacy Act of 1974; System of RecordsMeans Test Verification RecordsVA (89VA161)

DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS

Privacy Act of 1974; System of Records--Means Test Verification

Records--VA (89VA161)

AGENCY: Department of Veterans Affairs.

ACTION: Notice of new system of records.

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SUMMARY: The Privacy Act of 1974 (5 U.S.C. 552a(e)(4)) requires that

all agencies publish in the Federal Register a notice of the existence

and character of the systems of records. Accordingly, the Department of

Veterans Affairs (VA) published a notice of its inventory of personal

records on September 27, 1977 (42 FR 49726). Notice is hereby given

that VA is adding a new system of records entitled ``Means Test

Verification Records'' (89VA161).

DATES: Interested persons are invited to submit written comments,

suggestions, or objections regarding the routine uses in this new

system of records. All relevant materials received before March 25,

1994, will be considered. All written comments received will be

available for public inspection in Room 170 of the address given below

between Monday through Friday (except holidays) until April 4, 1994.

If no public comment is received during the 30-day review period

allowed for public comment or unless otherwise published in the Federal

Register by VA, the routine uses are effective March 25, 1994.

ADDRESSES: Written comments concerning the proposed routine uses may be

mailed to the Secretary, Department of Veterans Affairs (271A), 810

Vermont Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20420.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Celia Winter, Program Analyst, Income

Verification Match Program (161B/IVM), Veterans Health Administration,

Department of Veterans Affairs, 810 Vermont Avenue, NW, Washington, DC

20420, (202) 535-7437.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Public Law 99-272, the Veterans Health Care

Amendments of 1986, as amended by Public Law 100-322, established two

categories of eligibility for VA health care: ``mandatory and

discretionary.'' In order to determine the category assignment of

nonservice-connected veterans, new eligibility assessment procedures,

including the means test, were developed. The means tested is based on

income information provided by the nonservice-connected veteran. It was

developed to ensure that the most needy nonservice-connected veterans

would be placed in the mandatory care category based on limited family

income. The law provided VA no legislative authority to verify the

self-reported income.

In November 1990, Public Law 101-508, the Omnibus Budget

Reconciliation Act (OBRA), provided VA the authority to verify income

data reported to VA by nonservice-connected veterans with income

records obtained from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and the Social

Security Administration (SSA). Section 602, Public Law 102-568 extended

VA's matching authority through September 1997. The law has three

requirements for VA: (1) Notification to veterans that means test

financial information report to VA is subject to verification with IRS

and SSA records; (2) No steps may be taken to terminate, deny, suspend,

or reduce any benefit or service until appropriate steps have been

taken to independently verify the information received; and (3)

Development and implementation of a VA income verification matching

program be funded from the VA Compensation and Pension appropriation.

The Income Verification Match (IVM) Center was developed to conduct

and administer the computer matching of Veterans Health Administration

income data with IRS and SSA income records. Due to stringent IRS

security regulations and codes, the process of matching the income of

the veteran will be accomplished through a stand-alone automated data

processing program with verification activities centralized at the IVM

Center. The IVM Center is located in Decatur, Georgia.

Matching agreements have been established between the Veterans

Health Administration and the IRS and SSA for verifying income of

nonservice-connected veterans for appropriate years. The IVM Program

will adhere to require VA security and reporting requirements in

accordance with Title 38, Code of Federal Regulations, and other

Federal regulations, as well as 5 U.S.C. 552a, the Privacy Act, and 26

U.S.C. 6103, the Internal Revenue Code. This new system of records is

being established for IVM records to identify the types of information

being extracted and utilized for IVM and means tested verification, how

the data will be used and to describe he limited access to this data.

Approved: February 8, 1994.

Jesse Brown,

Secretary of Veterans Affairs.

89VA161

Means Test Verification Records--VA.

All paper and electronic records are maintained at the Income

Verification Match (IVM) Center, 1842 Clairmont Road, Decatur, Georgia

30033.

Nonservice-connected veterans who have applied for health care

services under Title 38, United States Code, Chapter 17, and in certain

cases, members of their immediate families.

Medical benefit application and eligibility information obtained

from the ``Patient Medical Record--VA'' (24VA136) system of records.

Identifying information including name, address, date of birth, social

security number, current eligibility category, family information

including spouse and dependent(s) name, address, social security

number; employment information on veteran and spouse including

occupation, employer(s) name(s) and address(es); financial information

including family income, assets, expenses, debts; and third-party

health plan contract information including health insurance carrier

name and address, policy number and time period covered by policy;

facility location(s) where treatment is provided, type of treatment

provided, i.e., inpatient or outpatient and length of stay or number of

visits. Documents generated as a result of income verification by

computer match with records from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and

the Social Security Administration (SSA) and during the notification,

verification and due process periods including initial verification

letters, income verification forms, income difference/final letters,

non-receipt/final letters, final confirmation letters, confirmation/due

process letters, non-receipt confirmation letters, clarification

letters, and all subpoena documentation. All forms of individual

correspondence generated during the process or provided to the IVM

Center by match participants including, but not limited to, copies of

death certificates, discharge certificates, DD 214, Notice of

Separation, disability award letters, Internal Revenue Service

documents (i.e., form 1040's, W-2's, etc.), State Welfare and Food

Stamp applications, VA and other pension applications, VA forms 10-10,

Application for Medical Benefits, and 10-10F, Financial Worksheet,

workers compensation forms, various annual earnings statements as well

as pay stubs.

Title 38, United States Code, sections 501(a); 5317 and 7304.

To the extent that records contained in the system include

information protected by 26 U.S.C. 6103(p)(4), i.e., the taxpayer's

identity, and the nature, source and amount of income, that information

cannot be disclosed under a Routine Use until such information has been

independently verified with the individual to whom it pertains pursuant

to 5 U.S.C. 552a(p).

1. The record of an individual who is covered by this system may be

disclosed to a member of Congress or staff person acting for the member

when the member or staff person requests the record on behalf of and at

the written request of that individual.

2. Disclosure of IVM records, as deemed necessary and proper to

named individuals serving as accredited service organization

representatives and other individuals named as approved agents or

attorneys for a documented purpose and period of time, to aid

beneficiaries in the preparation and presentation of their cases during

the verification and/or due process procedures and in the presentation

and prosecution of claims under laws administered by the Department of

Veterans Affairs.

3. In the event that information in this system of records

maintained by this agency to carry out its functions, indicates a

suspected violation or reasonably imminent violation of law, whether

civil, criminal or regulatory in nature, and whether arising by general

statute or a particular program statute, or by regulation, rule or

order issued pursuant thereto, the relevant records may be referred, as

a routine use, to the appropriate agency, whether Federal, State, local

or foreign, charged with the responsibility of investigating or

prosecuting such violation or charged with enforcing or implementing

the statute, or rule, regulation or order issued pursuant thereto.

4. Relevant information from this system of records may be

disclosed as a routine use: In the course of presenting evidence to a

court, magistrate or administrative tribunal, in matters of

guardianship, inquests and commitments; to private attorneys

representing veterans rated incompetent in conjunction with issuance of

Certificates of Incompetency; and to probation and parole officers in

connection with Court required duties.

5. Any information in this system may be disclosed to a VA Federal

fiduciary or a guardian ad litem in relation to his or her

representation of a veteran only to the extent necessary to fulfill the

duties of the VA Federal fiduciary or the guardian ad litem.

6. Relevant information may be disclosed to attorneys, insurance

companies, employers, third parties, liable or potentially liable under

health plan contracts, and to courts, boards, or commissions, such

disclosures may be made only to the extent necessary to aid the

Department of Veterans Affairs in the preparation, presentation, and

prosecution of claims authorized under Federal, State, or local laws,

and regulations promulgated thereunder.

7. Relevant information may be disclosed to the Department of

Justice and United States Attorneys in defense or prosecution of

litigation involving the United States, and to Federal Agencies upon

their request in connection with review of administrative tort claims

filed under the Federal Tort Claims Act, 28 U.S.C. 2672.

8. Disclosure may be made to NARA (National Archives and Records

Administration) GSA (General Services Administration) in records

management inspections conducted under authority of 44 U.S.C. 2904 and

2906.

9. Information in this system of records, may be disclosed for the

purposes identified below to a third party, except consumer reporting

agencies, in connection with any proceeding for the collection of an

amount owed to the United States by virtue of a person's participation

in any benefit program administered by the Department of Veterans

Affairs. Information may be disclosed under this routine use only to

the extent that it is reasonably necessary for the following purposes:

(a) To assist the VA in the collection of costs of services provided

individuals not entitled to such services; and (b) to initiate civil or

criminal legal actions for collecting amounts owed to the United States

and/or for prosecuting individuals who willfully or fraudulently

obtained or seek to obtain title 38 medical benefits. This disclosure

is consistent with 38 U.S.C. 5701(b)(6).

10. The name and address of a veteran, other information as is

reasonably necessary to identify such veteran, including personal

information obtained from other Federal agencies through computer

matching programs, and any information concerning the veteran's

indebtedness to the United States by virtue of the person's

participation in a benefits program administered by the VA may be

disclosed to a consumer reporting agency for purposes of assisting in

the collection of such indebtedness, provided that the provisions of 38

U.S.C. 5701(g)(4) have been met.

11. For computer matching program and ADP security review purposes,

record information may be disclosed to teams from other source Federal

agencies who are parties to computer matching agreements involving the

information maintained in this system, but only to the extent that the

information is necessary and relevant to the review.

12. The name and identifying information on a veteran and/or spouse

may be provided to reported payers of earned and/or unearned income in

order to verify the identifier provided, address, income paid, period

of employment, and health insurance information provided on the means

test and to confirm income and demographic data provided by other

Federal agencies during income verification computer matching.

13. Identifying information, including social security numbers,

concerning veterans, their spouses, and the dependents of veterans may

be disclosed to other Federal agencies for purposes of conducting

computer matches to obtain valid identifying, demographic and income

information to determine or verify eligibility of certain veterans who

are receiving VA medical care under Title 38, United States Code.

14. The name and social security number of a veteran, spouse and

dependents, and other identifying information as is reasonably

necessary may be disclosed to the Social Security Administration,

Department of Health and Human Services, for the purpose of conducting

a computer match to obtain information to validate the social security

numbers maintained in VA records.

Records (or information contained in records) are maintained on

paper documents, and/or in an automated imaging system database at the

Income Verification Match (IVM) Center, 1842 Clairmont Road, Decatur,

Georgia 30033.

IVM records are retrieved by the names and social security numbers

or other assigned identifiers of the individuals on whom they are

maintained.

1. Access to working spaces and record storage areas at the Income

Verification Match (IVM) Center is restricted to IVM employees on a

``need-to-know'' basis. Strict control measures are enforced to ensure

that disclosure to these individuals is also based on this same

principle.

2. All means test data downloaded from DHCP (Decentralized Hospital

Computer Program) files as well as all incoming Internal Revenue

Service (IRS) and Social Security Administration (SSA) tapes are

received directly by the IVM ADP Division. The IRS and SSA tapes are

placed into the IVM vault until the data is required for matching, at

which time it is loaded on the IVM Computer System. Once the tapes are

read-in, they are returned to the vault. Federal tax data is not co-

mingled with or transcribed into data maintained on the IVM Computer

System. The data will reside within its own area of the computer

system. Federal tax data must be protected according to the provisions

of section 6103(p) of the Internal Revenue Code (Title 26, U.S.C.). It

is mandatory that IVM employees review the IRS security awareness tapes

and VA computer security tapes on a yearly basis.

3. The IVM Computer System supplies security access levels for all

areas within the IVM Software Module. Security access levels are

maintained not only on the IRS and SSA data elements themselves, but on

initial access to the system (log-on procedures), menu options

available, automatic shut-down when the system has not had a response

in a predetermined period of time, etc. Access to the computer system

is controlled by access and verify codes assigned by the IVM ADP

Security Officer. The entire procedure is outlined in the IVM ADP

Security Policy.

4. The office space occupied by the IVM ADP Division is in a

secured area with only one access door. The door has been equipped with

a punch-combination lock and an electronic card entry system. The card

entry system logs every entrance and exit to the IVM space. The entry

system log is programmed to provide a screen display of employees

located in the IVM space as well as capturing entry and exit activity

in a report format for any given period of time.

5. There are no field offices that will be receiving tax return

information from IVM.

Paper records and information stored on electronic storage media

are maintained and disposed of in accordance with records disposition

authority approved by the Archivist of the United States. After the

data on each IRS and SSA tape has been validated as being a true copy

of the original data, the tapes are held in the vault for thirty (30)

days prior to destruction, either by degaussing or shredding. Any

printed reports will be shredded prior to disposal.

Official responsible for policies and procedures: Director,

Administrative Services Office (161), VA Central Office, 810 Vermont

Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20420. Officials maintaining the system:

Director, IVM Center, 1842 Clairmont Road, Decatur, Georgia 30033.

An individual who wishes to determine whether a record is being

maintained in this system under his or her name or other personal

identifier, or wants to determine the contents of such record, should

submit a written request or apply in person to the IVM Center. All

inquiries must reasonably identify the records requested. Inquiries

should include the individual's full name, social security number and

return address.

Individuals seeking information regarding access to and contesting

of IVM records may write to the IVM Center.

(See Record Access Procedures above.)

The patient, the patient's spouse, family members or accredited

representative(s), and friends, employers and other payers of earned

income, financial institutions and other payers of unearned income,

other Federal Agencies, and the ``Patient Medical Records--VA'' (24 VA

136) system of records, Veterans Benefits Administration Target System

(BINQ, HINQ, etc.).

[FR Doc. 94-3942 Filed 2-22-94; 8:45 am]

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