Digital Government

Open source is so much more than free code

The former Department of Veterans Affairs CIO shows how successful development and use of open source software requires collaboration, transparency and a commitment to management.

People

House VA committtee gets new boss

Rep. Phil Roe (R-Tenn.) will replace outgoing Congressman Jeff Miller of Florida as chairman of the House Committee on Veterans Affairs.

People

IT modernization isn't all about tech

More efficient and cost-effective IT often comes down to customer involvement and comfort, according to some IT experts.

Digital Government

What VA wants to learn from DOD's $4.3 billion EHR

As the Defense Department prepares to launch its new electronic health record system, the Department of Veterans Affairs will be watching for lessons.

Acquisition

New DOD health record to go live in February

After schedule delays, the Department of Defense plans to deploy its new electronic health record at Fairchild Air Force Base in early 2017.

Digital Government

VA ordering system looks like when we 'first started using computers'

Lawmakers are eager to see update to the Department of Veterans Affair's procurement processes, which GAO describes as "outdated and fragmented."

Digital Government

How agencies plan to improve customer service

Federal agencies are increasingly looking to the private sector for tips on how to improve customer experience.

Digital Government

Commission on Care, lawmakers want commercial EHR for VA

The leaders of the Commission on Care are recommending that the Department of Veterans Affairs abandon its homegrown VistA software for a commercial product.

Digital Government

Obama backs 15 of 18 VA commission recommendations

The Veterans Affairs' Commission on Care report includes a recommendation to add a CIO post at the Veterans Health Administration.

Modernization

VA expects movement on cloud acquisition this month

A top IT official said the Department of Veterans Affairs plans to start its move to the cloud with commodity applications.

Digital Government

The future of interoperability

There's more work to do to for the VA and the Pentagon to improve health data sharing.

Digital Government

VA demo day showcases employee-driven innovation

The Department of Veterans Affairs touted employees' technology-based projects for solving veterans' health care challenges.

Acquisition

VA mulls commercial EHR

The Department of Veterans Affairs is rounding up options for potential off-the-shelf health records software to replace its homegrown VistA product.

Digital Government

VA and VistA: Can they be fixed?

VA's homegrown electronic health record system is at an inflection point -- one that encapsulates the state of the agency's entire technology operation.

Cybersecurity

VA picks NASA executive for CISO slot

Senior NASA IT manager Roopangi Kadakia will take over the top IT security job at the Department of Veterans Affairs, FCW has learned.

Digital Government

On Capitol Hill, concerns remain about DOD-VA interoperability

Senate appropriators grilled top VA officials about whether the military and Veterans Affairs electronic health records systems are cooperating.

Modernization

VA looks to NITAAC for cloud

The Department of Veterans Affairs plans to conduct an upcoming cloud procurement using a National Institutes of Health acquisition vehicle.

Digital Government

Questions loom about the future of open source at VA

With pressure from Congress to abandon the Vista health record system, Veterans Affairs CIO LaVerne Council is facing tough questions about the future of open source at the agency.

Digital Government

VA's digital health platform not dependent on VistA

The Department of Veterans Affairs' under secretary for health told a Senate panel on Wednesday that the future of the agency's health IT is not linked to maintaining the home-grown health records system VistA.

Cybersecurity

Senate bill would require VA to stop using SSNs

Sen. Tammy Baldwin has introduced legislation that would make the VA stop using Social Security numbers as identifiers in its IT systems.