Government Accountability Office (GAO) Podcast: Watchdog Report Government Accountability Office

As the number of older Americans increases, so does the need for long term health services and supports. Medicaid is the nation's primary payer for long-term care. And because of how expensive it is to provide this care, more and more states are moving to managed care delivery models. But there are concerns about access to and the quality of care provided by these managed care organizations. We talk with Carolyn Yocom, an expert on Medicaid policy and a director in our Health Care Team, to learn more.

The federal government relies heavily on information and communication technology products and services to carry out day-to-day operations. This dependency has increased the complexity, diversity, and scale of the government supply chains--that is, the public and private partnerships that make, implement, or use communication technology solutions. However, in September of 2019, the Department of Homeland Security reported about 180 different threats to the supply chain. We talk with GAO's Carol Harris to find out more.

NASA has plans to return American astronauts to the Moon by the end of 2024, However, the success of these plans depend on two upcoming test flights. GAO reviewed NASA's progress towards that first test flight, as well as, the cost of efforts and the likelihood NASA will meet its 2024 deadline. We talk with GAO's Bill Russell, an expert on NASA programs and a director in our Contracting and National Security Acquisition Team, to find out more.

The electromagnetic spectrum is the range of frequencies critical for communications, navigation, and more. This information could be simple things we use every day, like GPS devises. However, the Department of Defense is using it for serious things--like national defense and controlling military equipment and operation. We talk with GAO's Joe Kirschbaum--an expert on defense infrastructure, and a director in our Defense Capabilities and Management Team--about a new report on DOD's strategy to protect the electromagnetic spectrum.

Rising college costs have outpaced federal grant aid, leading to concerns that a greater burden of costs are being borne by students and their families. This can also contribute to concerns about student loan debt. To help families save for college, some states, cities, and nonprofit organizations created savings or investment programs, often referred to as Children's Savings Accounts. We talk with GAO's Melissa Emrey Arras--an expert on higher education and a director in our Education, Workforce, and Income Security Team--to find out more.

Because of COVID-19, U.S. passenger air carriers are in dire economic straits in need assistance to prevent layoffs and other impacts to their employees, as well as significant impacts to travelers if there are reduced services. The CARES Act relief package authorizes the Department of Treasury to make us to $46 billion in loans or loan guarantees to support aviation and other businesses, but while that assistance is available, it has not been fully utilized. We talked to GAO's Heather Krause, an expert on aviation industries and a director in our Physical Infrastructure Team to find out more.