Editors’ Note: The story herein announces the latest bump on a decades-long road of efforts by DOD and the Veteran’s Administration to connect the health care systems of the military with those of the VA and establish state of the art records keeping for veterans.
The current effort is a $16 Billion sole source, non-competitive, contract award to CERNER, a commercial firm in lieu of in-house systems development, and is a major change in approach from past efforts that have cost further billions and led to shut downs and start overs. Having seen these types of government systems management challenges from the inside for over 4 decades I find myself sincerely doubting that both the scope and the price tag are final. For historical perspective, please see:
https://rosecoveredglasses.blogspot.com/2014/06/a-veteran-connects-dots-in-military-and.html Ken Larson
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“MILITARY.COM” By Rebecca Kheel
“The Department of Veterans Affairs will be required to regularly report the performance — including incidents that risk patient safety — of its troubled electronic health records systems to Congress under new legislation headed to the president’s desk.
The Senate approved a bill Thursday to require the VA to submit quarterly reports to lawmakers on the performance and costs of the Electronic Health Record Modernization program, or EHRM. The bill already passed the House in a voice vote in November, meaning it now heads to President Joe Biden for his signature.
A VA hospital in Spokane, Washington, was forced to suspend patient admissions and appointments after the records system, estimated by the agency to cost $16.1 billion, crashed in March. Multiple inspector general reports and news stories have highlighted issues with the rollout of the system that risked patient safety, as well as cost overruns.
“The VA, and consequently our nation, has invested a great deal of time and money into the VA Electronic Health Record Modernization program,” Senate Veterans Affairs Committee ranking member Sen. Jerry Moran, R-Kan., the lead sponsor of the Senate version of the bill, said in a statement.
The legislation will “ensure veterans receive the care they deserve and hold the VA accountable for taxpayer dollars,” Moran said.
The reports ordered by Congress, which would continue until after the program is fully implemented, would in part have to include “a list of patient safety reports, incidents, alerts or disclosures” at each facility where the new electronic system is in use.
The system, built by health technology powerhouse Cerner, was first launched at the Mann-Grandstaff VA Medical Center in Spokane in November 2020. After several delays, it was also rolled out in Walla Walla, Washington, and Columbus, Ohio, earlier this year.
In March, the VA inspector general released a series of three reports that found the system failed to flag patients who had been identified as suicide risks, gave doctors inaccurate information about patients’ medications, and caused delays in scheduling appointments, among other patient safety risks.
Those reports came after the IG in a pair of 2021 reports found the VA’s $16.1 billion cost estimate for the program is likely an underestimate of as much as $5.1 billion because planning and reports to Congress did not include physical and IT infrastructure costs.
There have also been media reports of glitches and shortcomings, including dozens of crashes. The issues have prompted some lawmakers to call on the VA to halt the rollout of the program.
“The EHR has been very frustrating, very disruptive and even dangerous for some of our patients,” Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., told VA Secretary Denis McDonough at a congressional hearing earlier this month. “I do not want EHR to move an inch further in my state until all of this is fixed and ready to go.”
Murray said reports from her constituents in the state show the system is “plagued” by problems.
VA officials have pledged to work with lawmakers to assuage their concerns but also claim the problems with the system are being ironed out.
“Spokane’s getting better, but it’s not perfect,” McDonough told Murray at the hearing. “I’m not suggesting it is. Walla Walla’s not been perfect, but it’s been better. So far, in day six in Columbus, we’re seeing reasonable results, but again, it’s early.”
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Rebecca Kheel is a congressional reporter for Military.com. She previously worked as a defense reporter for The Hill, covering all things defense from the view at the Capitol, including negotiations over annual defense authorization and appropriations bills, fights about the foreign policy crisis of the day and more.Prior to coming to D.C., she was a local reporter at the Orange County Register in California, writing about everything from disputes over new housing developments to the latest theme park ride openings. She has a bachelor’s degree in newspaper journalism and history from Syracuse University.
— Rebecca Kheel can be reached at rebecca.kheel@military.com. Follow her on Twitter @reporterkheel.
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