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VA tells committee EHR modernization rollout is 'back on track' after earlier failures
Summary
Secretary Collins told the House Appropriations subcommittee that standardization and direct engagement with vendors have allowed recent EHRM deployments in Michigan to proceed without reported failures, and he said more sites are queued for this year and next.
The Department of Veterans Affairs told the House Appropriations subcommittee on May 21 that its fourth attempt to modernize electronic health records (EHRM) is making measurable progress after prior setbacks.
Secretary Collins said he assembled VA staff and the vendor Oracle early in his tenure to force a single, standardized approach, describing a two-day session that produced a standardization plan. "Within that two days after that they locked themselves basically in a room for 48 hours and came up with a standardization plan that has now moved forward," Collins said. He reported that four Michigan sites deployed the new system "flawlessly" and that nine additional sites are planned for this year with more scheduled next year.
Nut graf: That finish-and-standardize approach responds to a 2025 GAO narrative and earlier pauses in deployment. Lawmakers cited the GAO finding that the department’s prior attempts had suffered planning, cost and safety issues; Collins acknowledged the program’s history but argued the present rollout is different on process and governance.
Committee members pressed for sustained performance, user training and metrics linking EHRM deployment to patient safety. Collins said the earlier difficulties stemmed from allowing too much local variation within the system and that the new approach eliminates optional local adaptations to create a single standard across sites. He also cited external reports showing a high share of VA hospitals with four- and five-star CMS ratings as an indicator of system performance improvements.
What’s next: The department said more deployment dates are scheduled and that VA will continue to brief the committee on site readiness and safety performance.
