As the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs resumes its Oracle Health EHR rollout, the agency plans to prove doubters wrong because the implementation is “different this time,” a project leader said.
The VA is scheduled to install the EHR at 13 medical centers in 2026, starting in April with four hospitals in Michigan, and could finish the program by 2031. The initiative was put on hold in 2023 as the agency and EHR vendor worked out technical and patient safety concerns.
“Oracle Health has improved system performance, reliability and usability, including operating at 100% outage-free for 27 of the last 31 months,” Deputy VA Secretary Paul Lawrence, PhD, wrote in a March 17 news release. “The federal EHR is now reliably available to end users, with no systemwide outages. We have reduced disruptions, prevented lost productivity and ensured critical workflows continue without delay.”
The EHR, live at six VA sites, has also had 100% attainment of ticket management targets for 30 consecutive months and 100% attainment of incident-free time for almost two years in a row, according to the release.
Dr. Lawrence wrote that’s what’s new this time is “intentional and committed leadership,” better engagement with local leaders, and increased accountability, including multiple daily meetings with senior VA executives and Oracle Health and other vendor partners.
He also described the end goal: “Veterans will spend less time undergoing repeat tests, imaging and exams because results and reports from the Department of War and community healthcare providers will already be in the system. … The only thing they will notice is that their doctors and nurses have more time for meaningful conversations with them.”
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