Digital Government

Inter-Agency Effort Targets the Half of Veterans Who Never Engage With VA

The resource hub out of the departments of Defense and Veterans Affairs is part of a larger White House initiative to better respond to the life experiences of Americans.

Digital Government

Permanent Funding for VA’s Tech Training Program Heads to House Floor

VA’s VET-TEC pilot ran out of funding last week, but lawmakers on the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee have approved bipartisan legislation that would permanently reauthorize the program.

Digital Government

6 Major Multibillion Dollar Tech Procurements to Watch in 2023

Contracts range in potential estimated value from $5 billion to $100 billion, according to government spending data and Deltek analysis.

Modernization

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.

Modernization

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.”

Modernization

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.

Modernization

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.

Digital Government

VA’s New Cyber Apprenticeship Program Will Focus on Training for Underserved Veterans

The VA’s initiative, set to begin this summer, “is really designed to attract that diverse and inclusive cybersecurity talent,” a department official told Nextgov.

Modernization

VHA's $8.5M Emergency Comms System Largely Inoperable, OIG Finds

An audit conducted by VA’s Office of Inspector General found that an estimated 80% of the emergency communications systems deployed at 184 VA medical facilities are “not fully operational.”

Modernization

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.

Modernization

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.

Digital Government

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.

Digital Government

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.

Modernization

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.”

Modernization

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.

Emerging Tech

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.

Digital Government

VA Announces Winners of $20M Challenge to Prevent Veteran Suicides

The 10 winners of the VA’s Mission Daybreak challenge developed innovative solutions that leveraged technology, artificial intelligence and mobile apps to help reduce the number of veteran suicides.

Modernization

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.”

Digital Government

VA Centers Talent Recruitment and Remote Work in Its Operations Revamp 

The agency’s chief people officer described efforts to attract high-skilled workers affected by layoffs across the tech sector and expand telework opportunities to modernize tech-centric operations.

Digital Government

Industry Voices Complaints Over Short Response Window for $60B VA Recompete

Contractors had only four business days to weigh in on the draft solicitation for the next version of the Veterans Affairs Department's T4NG IT solutions vehicle.