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The Veterans Affairs Department wants help in managing an integrated electronic health record system. On July 13, the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) released a solicitation for professional and technical services in support of health information sharing.
According to the statement of work, the scope “involves creating specific deliverables that focus on Interagency Program and Project Management and Interoperable Electronic Health Records, Strategic Planning, and Consulting Services to VHA. This work centers on EHR Interoperability and Innovation at VA/DoD Joint Venture and medical sharing locations.”
VHA’s solicitation coincides with a recent Government Accountability Office report expressing concerns about the VA’s ability to achieve interoperability goals and future plans, according to the July 13 report. The VA has developed a number of plans to support development of its electronic health record system, called VistA. GAO cited a September 2015 report prepared by Mitre Corp. for the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Alliance to Modernize Health Care, which found that VistA development had been delayed and the system was “in danger of becoming obsolete.”
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The GAO reports that although VA’s under secretary for health has asserted that the department will complete the VistA Evolution program in fiscal 2018, the VA’s chief information officer has said he is reconsidering how best to meet the VA’s future electronic health record system needs.
Date: July 22, 2016