Health Records

Senate confirms deputy secretary at VA

Tanya Bradsher takes over as the top official tasked with managing the Department of Veterans Affairs’ troubled electronic health record project.

  • By Adam Mazmanian

CMS findings identify barriers to effective healthcare

COMMENTARY | Many of these issues are multifaceted and complex to address, and they would require collaboration between public and private sectors.

  • By Judy Jiao

VA official expects Oracle Cerner to deliver on $10B EHR contract despite layoffs

While lawmakers and officials expect work to continue as planned, an insider warned that layoffs at Oracle Cerner targeted a clinical team that worked to implement new electronic health record systems.

  • By Edward Graham

VA Lacks Goals to Assess Satisfaction With New EHR, Watchdog Finds

The report from the Government Accountability Office found that the absence of such goals has limited the agency’s ability to “objectively measure progress toward improving EHRM users’ satisfaction.”

  • By Edward Graham

House Lawmakers Lambast EHR Rollout Over Pharmacy Problems

Both witnesses and lawmakers agreed that the Oracle Cerner EHR system at its current state is not satisfactory—but disagreed over how to fix it.

  • By Kirsten Errick

House Lawmakers Introduce Bipartisan Bill to Reform VA’s EHR Program

The bipartisan proposal would require VA to prioritize system improvements at the five medical facilities currently using the new software before deploying it at any additional sites.

  • By Edward Graham

VA Pauses Future EHR Deployments Under ‘Larger Program Reset’

The Department of Veterans Affairs said it plans to delay future rollouts of the new EHR system until it is confident that the software “is highly functioning at current sites and ready to deliver for veterans and VA clinicians at future sites.”

  • By Edward Graham

House Lawmakers Coalesce Around Bipartisan Fixes to VA’s EHR System

The top Democrat and Republican on the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee have started bipartisan negotiations to address the Department of Veterans Affairs’ troubled rollout of its new electronic health record system.

  • By Edward Graham

‘Human Error’ Exposed Lawmakers’ Personal Info in DC Health Data Breach

The benefit exchange’s director testified before a House Committee on the ongoing investigation into a data breach exposing DC residents’ and lawmakers’ data.

  • By Alexandra Kelley

Congress's Competing Proposals to Fix VA's Ailing EHR Program

Top lawmakers tasked with overseeing the Department of Veterans Affairs have introduced competing bills to enhance oversight of VA’s new electronic health record system.

  • By Edward Graham

VA Again Delays Rollout of New Electronic Health Record System

The Department of Veterans Affairs, which announced last October it was pausing rollouts of its new EHR system until June 2023, said it “is not yet ready” to move forward with the software’s scheduled deployment at the VA Saginaw Healthcare System.

  • By Edward Graham

Top Republican Moves to Block VA’s EHR Deployment Until Improvements Are Made 

A dozen GOP senators—including the ranking member of a key committee—signed on to the bill.

  • By Edward Graham

Lawmakers Need to Enhance VA’s Oversight of Oracle EHR Rollout or ‘Move On,’ Top Republican Says

House Veterans’ Affairs Committee Chair Mike Bost, R-Ill., said Republicans and Democrats in both chambers of Congress are largely aligned “on what we know we want to fix and the problems that we’re seeing” with the deployment of VA’s new EHR system.

  • By Edward Graham

Veteran Deaths Lead Lawmakers to Call for VA to Renegotiate Oracle EHR Contract

Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee Chairman Jon Tester said that VA should “negotiate an entirely new contract” with Oracle Cerner following the revelation that the EHR system has resulted in the deaths of four veterans.

  • By Edward Graham
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Official: VA’s Legacy EHR Must Be Maintained, But Not a Long-Term Solution

The official cautioned that “modernization would require VistA be rewritten almost from scratch.”

  • By Edward Graham

Report Spotlights Medical Infrastructure, Utilities as Primary Cyber Targets

A report from TransUnion documented the industries that most suffered from cyberattacks in the end of 2022, and recommended mitigation measures.

  • By Alexandra Kelley

VA’s New EHR System ‘Continues to Burn Money,’ Top Republican Says

The U.S. comptroller general told members of the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee that VA has spent “over $1.7 billion dollars for failed predecessor electronic healthcare record systems” prior to the new Oracle Cerner EHR system.

  • By Edward Graham

VA Delays Health Record Go-live at Key Michigan Site

The Ann Arbor, Mich., site was set to be the first Level 1 facility to host the new Oracle Cerner health record in June.

  • By Adam Mazmanian

Top Senator Says Modernizing VA’s EHR 'Is Not Optional'

After leading GOP lawmakers introduced legislation to terminate the deployment of VA’s new electronic health record program, Sen. Jon Tester, D-Mont.—chairman of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee—said upgrading the system “has to be done.”

  • By Edward Graham

House Republicans Seek to Mandate VA's EHR Program Improve or Face Termination

Leading GOP lawmakers on the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee introduced legislation to expand oversight over the VA’s new electronic health record system and, if need be, to terminate the program.

  • By Edward Graham

Despite Issues, VA’s EHR Deployment Remains Scheduled to Pick Up in Mid-2023

The Department of Veterans Affairs and Congress are continuing to support the rollout of the agency’s new electronic health record system, even as lawmakers remain concerned about the project’s cost and effectiveness.

  • By Edward Graham