This report examines the issues surrounding the Walter Reed public-private
Source: Valerie Bailey Grasso, CRS Report, June 10, 2008
This report examines the issues surrounding the Walter Reed public-private
competition conducted under Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Circular A-
76 and its potential impact on future Department of Defense (DOD) competitions.
Circular A-76 is a policy and a process first initiated in 1966 that was designed to
determine whether federal employees or private sector contractors are best to perform
activities deemed commercial. A series of articles that first appeared in the
Washington Post chronicled the dilapidated conditions and the substandard medical
treatment afforded to returning veterans. Media reports surrounding the competition
have suggested that one possible contributing factor to the Walter Reed controversy
was the decision to privatize base support services.