An Empirical Study of the Management and Oversight of Medical Services Acquisition Within the Department of Defense

Abstract

The purpose of this MBA report is to determine how the Department of Defense (DoD) manages and oversees medical services acquisition. In April 2009, the Market Research Analyst reported that the DoD is set to spend $47 billion in healthcare in 2010. Our analysis delves into the medical services procurement practices of the DoD as well as the surveillance and training measures for the Army, Navy, and Air Force. To accomplish this objective, we developed an online pilot survey to address the current state of medical services acquisition management. The pilot survey gathered empirical data from military organizations responsible for the management and oversight of Federal Service Code Q--medical services. This pilot survey was conducted from 26 October to 6 November 2009 and obtained an 85% response rate. The results show that the Services all use personal and non-personal medical services contracts and the majority of the contracts are fixed-price. Additionally, the majority of Medical Contracting Commands identified staffing shortfalls, healthcare provider salary cap issues, and a shortage of trained and experienced contracting personnel as challenges in contracting for medical services. The findings of this MBA report will support on-going research in the area of services acquisition management.