The GAO said since the Pentagon stopped its efforts to find victims, the Institute of Medicine identified 394 more through research it was conducting; inquiries by another 165 veterans later showed they were participants; and research by GAO itself found another 39 names.

The GAO said Congress may want to order the Pentagon to do a formal cost-benefit analysis about conducting more research to find victims, and to require documentation for its decision, to ensure all potentially fruitful work is considered.

In written comments, the Pentagon disagreed. "To date, DOD has received no credible leads that would allow DOD to continue its research. Thus, DOD sees no advantage to conducting a cost-benefits analysis four years after informing Congress of its plans."

Meanwhile, the GAO also complained, "DOD has not taken any action to notify approximately 1,900 civilians who were potentially exposed during chemical or biological tests. DOD officials told us they have primarily focused on service members since the primary impetus for research has been requests for information from VA."

The GAO also complained that VA may not have done enough to contact the people identified by the Pentagon. The GAO said the VA has only been able to contact (or verify as deceased) 48 percent of those identified.

But the GAO said the VA was using credit bureau databases as a source for contact information. It said the VA had not used potential resources from the Internal Revenue Service or the Social Security Administration to find and warn those people, or verify that they are deceased.

The GAO concluded about potential victims, "As this population becomes older, it will become more imperative for DOD and VA to identify and notify these individuals in a timely manner because they might be eligible for health care or other benefits."

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E-mail: lee@desnews.com