Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)

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Senator Slams Pentagon for Its Electronic Health Record Strategy

Bob Brewin | NextGov | June 12, 2013

Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., opened today’s Senate Budget Committee hearing on the Defense Department’s 2014 spending plan with sharp criticism over the Pentagon’s decision not to develop an integrated electronic health record with the Veterans Affairs Department. Read More »

Sequester Damage Detailed; Health Records Won’t Merge

Tom Philpott | The News Tribune | August 3, 2013

With Congress seemingly satisfied to let the defense budget take another $52 billion hit in the fiscal year that begins Oct. 1 [...] Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel gave a preview recently of how Round 2 of budget sequestration could rattle current forces and deepen damage to U.S. readiness. Read More »

Sequestration Can’t Halt Government’s ‘Historic’ Health IT Spending

Frank Konkel | Nextgov | July 21, 2016

Federal health IT spending grew 27 percent annually from fiscal 2011-2015, with the market jumping from $2 billion four years ago to $6.5 billion in fiscal 2015, according to research from big data and analytics firm Govini. Civilian health agencies fueled health IT spending the most. The Health and Human Services Department increased its annual health IT spend by a compound annual growth rate of 34 percent, with about half of its total obligations driven by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, which is preparing for a major modernization effort and call center upgrade...

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Seven Ways For Health Services Research To Lead Health System Change

Joel Kupersmith and David Atkins | Health Affairs Blog | May 30, 2013

With the implementation of the Affordable Care Act now at hand — and with it, the formation of accountable care organizations (ACOs) — health services research (HSR) has an especially important role to play. As ACOs take steps that will substantially change health care delivery, the ability to measure and improve health system performance and acquire this data efficiently will be in greater demand. Is HSR up to the challenge? Read More »

SGT. SHAFT: Civilian Population Should Have Access To Talking Prescription System

Sgt. Shaft | Washington Times | November 6, 2012

"I know that you are very interested in the safety of visually impaired veterans when taking their prescriptions. You understand all too well the danger of not reading prescription labels and the possibility of making a tragic mistake..." Read More »

Shinseki Reaffirms Commitment To VistA EHR In Budget Hearing

Jennifer Bresnick | EHRIntelligence | April 16, 2013

Appearing before the Senate Committee on Veterans Affairs yesterday, VA Secretary Eric Shinseki reiterated his commitment to using VistA as its core system during its ongoing effort to integrate its EHR with the Department of Defense... Read More »

Shinseki Wants A Budget For The VA

Anthony Brino | Government Health IT | October 9, 2013

Veterans will still receive medical and hospital care no matter how long the federal government is shut down, Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki told lawmakers, but funding for benefits and other programs may run out in November, threatening veterans’ financial health. Read More »

Shinseki: Utah VA ‘Superb’ In Pilot Of New System For Disability Claims

Kristen Moulton | Salt Lake Tribune | June 25, 2013

Veterans can now file their disability claims online, a move that will help the Department of Veterans Affairs erase its backlog of claims in 2015, V.A. Secretary Eric Shinseki said Tuesday in Salt Lake City. Read More »

Shinseki’s Critics Will Eat Their Words

Stewart Hickey | The Hill | June 19, 2013

There is nearly universal agreement that too many American veterans are made to languish unnecessarily under the current Department of Veterans Affairs claims backlog. [...] Some critics have even called for the resignation of VA Secretary Eric K. Shinseki... Read More »

Should the DoD Buy Epic, or Cerner, or GE, or...?

Margalit Gur-Arie | On Health Care Technology | July 12, 2013

After a lengthy foray into building its own EHR from scratch (AHLTA) [...] and another shorter detour through the fantasy land of an open-source integrated EHR (iEHR) [...], the DoD announced that it will begin looking for a commercially available product to suit the DoD’s unique needs. Read More »

Should The DoD Buy Epic, Or Cerner, Or GE, Or…?

Margalit Gur-Arie | HIT Consultant | July 23, 2013

The Department of Defense (DoD) is in the market for an EHR solution… again. After a lengthy foray into building its own EHR from scratch (AHLTA), [...] and another shorter detour [...] with the Veteran Administration (VA), [...] the DoD announced that it will begin looking for a commercially available product to suit the DoD’s unique needs. Read More »

Significant Threats to Patient Safety from Healthcare Provider Overload and Burnout Must be Addressed

Press Release | High Reliability Organization Council (HROC), Sepsis Alliance | February 10, 2017

Sepsis Alliance and the High Reliability Organization Council (HROC), two leading national advocates for patient safety, are raising the alarm on shortages in healthcare personnel, and the increase in data overload and medical provider burnout that is putting more and more patients at risk. Examples include long wait times to get appointments (which affects access to care), misdiagnoses that delay care, wrong-site surgeries, and other safety failures...