Noteboom The Law Firm

VA And DoD Having Problems Coming Together On Electronic Health Records

February 11, 2011 - The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and the Department of Defense (DoD) have been spending significant time attempting to join forces to create a single electronic health record (EHR) program. According to a recent Government Accountability Office (GAO) report, however, the two agencies seem to have real problems working together.

For some reason the GAO could not discern, each agency is creating their own EHR program and then they will attempt to merge the two together. Moreover, they both seem to expect the merging of the two programs to be a seamless transition. Unfortunately, neither agency has the ability to identify and/or put into practice any semblance of helpful information technology (IT) solutions, which are necessary to solve universal needs in health care systems.      

According to the GAO, which is a congressional investigatory agency, neither one of the departments have, or can, communicate any detailed plans, ultimate goals, or timeframes on how they will each handle the health IT needs both systems share. Further, neither agency has made any solid efforts to demonstrate how the two agencies plan on utilizing architecture to ensure the joined systems are modernized.    

The GAO's report found no plans from either agency on how they will move from their separate IT systems to a single EHR health IT structure. To date there is not even a suggested process for how the two agencies will select IT investments to meet common needs within the joint IT construction.

There is a ways to go according to the GAO report. Both agencies must learn how to start communicating effectively and work together if they ever want their IT health programs to be successful.