Every year on Veterans Day, our nation honors all those who served in the military. It is a day for remembrance, reflection, and gratitude for those who defended the American way of life. At the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), we honor Veterans every day through our continued commitment to ensuring they receive the world-class health care, benefits, and services they deserve.
This commitment is fulfilled by VA’s dedicated workforce, many of whom are Veterans themselves. This reflects a unique understanding and shared experience because they have donned the same uniforms and faced the same challenges of military life. This connection enriches Veterans’ experience at VA facilities and fosters an environment where Veterans can feel understood, supported and cared for.
Since becoming VA Deputy Secretary, I have prioritized visiting VA facilities and have had the privilege of hearing first-hand from my fellow Veterans about their needs and experiences. Their stories highlight not only the need for high-quality health care but also the importance of more time for individual attention. In fact, on every trip, I go to a Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) or American Legion post and convene a roundtable to hear from Veterans on what VA can do better. One of the main takeaways regarding health care is “More care, less history.”
Veterans want to discuss their current health care needs, rather than continually recounting their medical history, and care providers want to practice medicine instead of navigating a cumbersome health record. Consequently, VA must improve its service to Veterans by ensuring that their entire medical history—including all tests, medications, and referrals—is readily accessible at any time at any facility.
For this reason, Secretary Collins and I have made deploying the Federal Electronic Health Record (EHR) a top priority. The Federal EHR is a powerful tool that will help Veterans, improve care provision and drive innovation. Veterans will have more time to talk with providers about current concerns because they will spend less time repeating their health history. Veterans will also spend less time undergoing repeat tests, imaging and exams because results and reports from the Department of War and community health care providers are already in the system.
Another benefit of the Federal EHR is that Veterans will have an improved and consistent experience when transferring their care from their local VA. If a Veteran is referred to another VA or visits a community provider, the new care team will be able to quickly access all their records, referrals and orders. Finally, Veterans will benefit from innovative treatment options. As the system is deployed to more facilities, it will generate more data, leading to more informed and innovative treatments for all Veterans.
The deployment of the Federal EHR throughout VA should feel seamless to Veterans. The only thing they should notice is that their doctors and nurses have more time for meaningful conversations with them.
Veterans are at the center of everything we do, and we honor their sacrifices by delivering superior health care through better systems, more accessible services and a deeper understanding of their unique needs. Veterans put us first when they committed to serve in the Armed Forces. Now, it is our turn to put Veterans first by accelerating the delivery of a fully functional, integrated EHR system that enhances their care and well-being.
To all those who have served this great nation and defended its ideals, thank you, and Happy Veterans Day.
Learn more about VA’s EHR Modernization initiative.
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Mr. Under Secretary,
I’m incarcerated, have been for over 10 years. We receive no support from VA in prison. And many of us have ended up in here arguably being messed up from military related trauma. There was a bill passed in 1999 which took the VA out of every prison in America. We totally relied on sub par mental health treatment or none at all. PTSD just gets worse and worse. Other issues states are not in a position to handle are just as bad. Leon Panetta and Chuck Hagle are leading the way for reversing that 1999 bill along with the national incarcerated veterans movement. We served, we still need help while we languish doing our time for our crimes. States just don’t have the resources, which is the reason the VA withdrew from state prisons, they thought they states had the ammo, well, they don’t. Hope you all have a wonderful holiday out there. Respectfully, Rob A.
If VA was so committed, why am I fighting so much with House and Senate
committees, subcommittees? Explaining to decades of staffers that move on
and have me starting over year after year for 28 years.
Laws passed in the 90s do not keep pace for Gulf war veterans. The PACT act
is not inclusive. OIF is out to save OIF from 2003 on. So the folks that make
up the hill are from this time frame.
Gulf war vets only have ss 3.317 to service connect. It does not. Largely because
the language focuses on undiagnosed illness. 93% rejection rate even with the
new ICD 10 code which changes little. VA is fine with this. It should only reflect
time frame and location and let go of UDX.
PL 105-368 didnt keep up either. The VA RAC was focused on research and was
never intended to address healthcare, benefits. By 2021 it was punished for
doing so and stripped of its advocate members. Driven by a really sour Sec of
VA Eric Shenseki who later resigned in disgrace. In fact, over 23 years no sec
of VA really supported VA RACs recommendations. So looking to leadership
has been the problem, none are forced to act on it. They dont. With a attitude.
Instead of a specialty clinic, we have the WRIISC with its somatic illness campaign.
This was not what we intended with it. VA and DOD made it about military wide
service to devalue Gulf war vets. Now we cant get in to be seen at all. Time to strike
this program and create a specialty Gulf War clinic just for us. With a Toxic Exposure
Pathology center to help find physical evidence. Like POPs in body fat. Forever
compounds effecting average Americans more every day.
Just found out DOD serum repository is secretly doing my genome sequencing
proposal and pre-post deployment analysis. Flat lied to me in 2023 about it cant
be done. Only, they are looking at target genes that support bad science when I
asked it be the complete genome. What changed after the war? Ive been working
on this for 20 years now. The 1998 HIV serum samples can be amplified and used
for sequencing up to 45 years out. Ive been right since 2005. Long before even
Darpa looked into this.
Lastly, its time to release all the Gulf war classified records and start service
connecting hidden events. Thousands of them. 34 years after the war. OSAGWI
buried this information and lied about what was there. Covered it up. Stop
punishing the vets over this. As well as release CRUR unit locator data to help
them find the locations by grid coordinates each day they were there. Has that
data from when they landed to when they got back.
I keep writing this here at News.va.gov in public comments. Year after year VA
leadership pretends Im not writing here. Doug Collins, Paul Lawrence, and
others have seen my post including at Linkedin. In return there attitude is
I dont exist and they win by being snobs. All is solved. That none of what I write
has any value these last 28 years. What does a combat possibly know? Maybe
34 years of experience in the system.
Keep in mind folks, Im still here and my prediction rate in 82% over 20 years.
I served on a VA Gulf war federal advisory committee. Why is it I have to post
here rather than be talking with VA executive staff who are NOT doing a
better job? Lets change this dynamic and go back to open door policy.
All I want to do is reorder hearing aid filters. I have spent over an hour on the phone, four phone calls only to be disconnected/hung-up on after holding for 15 to 20 min. listening to a “A reprehensive will be with you momentarily”. I’ve been on this site searching for almost an hour and still haven’t found the answer to a SIMPLE question, “HOW DO I REORDER HEARING AID FILTERS?”. It is almost like, “HOW DO WE FRUSTRATE YOU ENOUGH THAT YOU GO AWAY & QUIT BOTHERING US”~~I’ve read the same comments all the way back to 2017 with the same common thread. I had hoped the VA had gotten their act together. especially under President TRUMP. ~~~The deep state is really deep~~~
The data already goes from one place to another in the current system.
The Joint Legacy Viewer is the technology currently used to access VA records from other VA sites. It’s harder to use than the previous program to retrieve records.
Providers are still going to want to check some of the history with patients themselves. Each provider works under their own ethics and will want to double check on accuracy.
The other issue in relying on past history is the time squeeze providers are usually under. It takes time to review past records to get all the details to ensure you don’t have to do a new history. The VA doesn’t always allow enough time for this.
Time is squeezed even more when snother employee is out or has moved on to another job.
Plus the VA expects its providers to become involved in other initatives beyond patient care that support the overall mission or public face of the VA.
Squuezing employees will still be a big part of the problem unless these programs somehow do make documentation a lot faster.
One last thing, what if a patient has a new or previously unrecorded symptom that they bring up in a retelling of things? What if they forgot before, didn’t think it mattered, or it’s new? What if that symptom, even if small, changes the course of care for the better?
I’m a Veteran and formee VA employee, just keeping it real.
Sounds good. My veteran partner lives in NC. It has been aggravating when he has visited in one city and they can’t access records from another city. ?♀️ with the technology out there u would assume that, that information would be easily accessible.
May you rot in hell.
Once again, I want to express my thanks and gratitude to our country and the VA for all they do for us veterans. I could go on for pages outlining the vast number of services available to us. Of particular importance is the recently announced Federal Electronic Health Record program, which as I interpret it, will allow the exchange of health information between the VA and community care providers. I have been advocating such a program for some time to our local VA and now it will come to fruition. In addition to improving healthcare, it will significantly eliminate duplicate tests and procedures, resulting in what I predict will result in major costs savings. Another notable change is the improvement to community care guidelines, which will reduce paperwork for the VA, reduce the number of community care referrals veterans need to make and result in improved continuity of care for veterans. I came to the US as a youngster many years ago with $40 in my pocket and a willingness to reside in the greatest country in the world. I joined the military and as a result, learned a profession and upon discharge, attended college. All I have I owe to this great country. Thanks again for all you do!
thank you for your consideration
I have been going to the Lee County VA since it was built new. Transferred all my doctors there. This is a great facility. They take much better care of me then I would of myself. The VA is doing a great job caring for Veterans.