{"id":112974,"date":"2018-05-17T22:17:04","date_gmt":"2018-05-17T22:17:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/uncategorized\/2018\/05\/17\/va-finalizes-contract-to-bring-electronic-health-records-in-line-with-military-systems\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T13:18:36","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T13:18:36","slug":"va-finalizes-contract-to-bring-electronic-health-records-in-line-with-military-systems","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/veterans\/2018\/05\/17\/va-finalizes-contract-to-bring-electronic-health-records-in-line-with-military-systems\/","title":{"rendered":"VA finalizes contract to bring electronic health records in line with military systems"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

WASHINGTON \u2014 Veterans Affairs<\/a> officials on Thursday finalized their contract with the Missouri-based Cerner Corp. to bring veterans\u2019 electronic medical records<\/a> in line with Defense Department systems, a multi-year and multi-billion-dollar effort that could have wide ranging impact on all of American health care.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But the move also comes at a time when the new records system<\/a> is under increased scrutiny<\/a>, following the release of a government report<\/a> that found the military\u2019s program right now is neither operationally effective nor suitable for the department.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Administration leaders had originally announced the VA deal last summer, but the contract\u2019s future has been in doubt since the firing of VA Secretary<\/a> David Shulkin in March.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sources with knowledge of the contract negotiations said White House officials had openly questioned whether the ambitious records plan should be scrapped completely, because of concerns about the cost and Cerner\u2019s ability to carry out the deal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But Thursday\u2019s announcement ended that speculation. In a statement, acting VA Secretary Robert Wilkie<\/a> called the agreement \u201cone of the largest IT contracts in the federal government\u201d and said it will help \u201cprovide seamless care to veterans as they transition from military service\u201d to civilian life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhen fully deployed, the new system will represent a monumental advance in veterans\u2019 health care, bigger than VA\u2019s initial deployment of electronic health records 40 years ago,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The deal for the first time puts the two largest federal departments on a path toward using the same medical records system.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The conflicting VA and military electronic health files have been a source of controversy for years, both from lawmakers frustrated at billions spent on incomplete interoperability efforts and veterans who had repeated difficulty accessing medical records from their time in the ranks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

President Donald Trump touted the agreement last summer to bring together the two systems \u2014 through a non-competitive contract worth upwards of $10 billion \u2014 as a major advance in his promise to reform and modernize VA operations. In recent days, acting VA Secretary Robert Wilkie said the contract remained a top priority for the department.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Staff at the 374th Surgical Operations Squadron Same Day Surgery Unit simulate post-surgery care on a colleague. (Airman John D. Partlow\/Air Force)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Work transferring VA records to the same MHS GENESIS records system is expected to take about a decade. The system is currently being installed at a select number of military health facilities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But a memorandum late last month from the Pentagon\u2019s director for operational test and evaluation, Robert Behler, found the system for now does not \u201cdemonstrate enough workable functionality to manage and document patient care.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Officials also warned of \u201cinsufficient training and inadequate help desk support\u201d with the new system.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That has threatened to delay full deployment of the system across the Department of Defense, although officials handling the $4 billion health records rollout have said they expected some difficulties and adjustments in the initial phases of fielding.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Shulkin \u2014 who was seen as a driving force behind the VA records modernization before his firing \u2014 had told lawmakers the new contract would not only unite military and veterans records, but provide a blueprint for medical records sharing across all of the American health care system.<\/p>\n\n\n\t