U.S. Secretary of Veterans Affairs Dr. David Shulkin announced today that the VA will no longer use the VistA electronic health record system and will be switching to Cerner Millennium, which is the system that the Department of Defense is currently installing.

The VA has a history with IT problems and it is refreshing to see the VA take the initiative on upgrading their systems with private sector options. Speaking at a press conference, Secretary Shulkin said this about transitioning to a commercial product:

“Our current VistA system is in need of major modernization to keep pace with the improvements in health information technology and cybersecurity, and software development is not a core competency of VA. I said recently to Congress that I was committed to getting VA out of the software business, that I didn’t see remaining in that business as benefitting Veterans.  And, because of that, we’re making a decision to move towards a commercial off-the-shelf product.”

Secretary Shulkin testified at a recent House Veterans Affairs Committee hearing that $4 billion was spent last year on IT and 70 percent of that funding went towards maintenance. The switch to a commercial, off the shelf product will cut down on wasteful spending for ineffective programs and refocus the VA on its primary goal of providing health care to our veterans.

This new electronic health record system is a step in the right direction in giving veterans the health care they deserve. We urge Congress to work with Secretary Shulkin on creating a smooth transition to this new health records system and ensure there are no delays in care for veterans.

The post A Step in the Right Direction–Veterans Affairs Switches IT System appeared first on Concerned Veterans for America.