In honor of Veterans Month this November, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is rolling out nationwide access for Veterans to their VA health data, alongside their health records from other health care providers in one place, in the Health Records section of the Health app for iPhone.

Now, patients will be able to see their medical information from various participating institutions, including VA, organized into one view. The view covers allergies, conditions, immunizations, lab results, medications and procedures and vitals. Veterans will also receive notifications when their data is updated.

“We have delivered Veterans an innovative new way to easily and securely access their health information,” said VA Secretary Robert Wilkie. “Veterans deserve access to their health data at any time and in one place, and with Health Records on the Health app, VA has pushed the Veterans experience forward.”

This capability was developed through VA’s Veterans Health Application Programming Interface (Veterans Health API), first revealed in February, and has topped 2,000 users. The Veterans Health API allows private sector organizations to create and deploy innovative digital applications that help Veterans access their health records in new ways. Health Records data is encrypted and protected with the user’s iPhone passcode, Touch ID, or Face ID.

Beyond this effort with Apple, VA plans to partner with other organizations to bring similar capabilities to other mobile platforms.

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The comments section is for opinions and feedback on this particular article; this is not a customer support channel. If you are looking for assistance, please visit Ask VA or call 1-800-698-2411. Please, never put personally identifiable information (SSAN, address, phone number, etc.) or protected health information into the form — it will be deleted for your protection.

64 Comments

  1. Eric Allen Stanger November 30, 2019 at 08:05

    This sounds like something that would be fun and help with some of my service connected disabilities. I served from 02-05 with 1 tour in Iraq from January-August 03 with 3/7 CAV. I would really like to be considered for this opportunity please contact me.
    Thank you,
    Sincerely,
    Eric Allen Stanger

  2. Kenneth A Raby Jr November 26, 2019 at 14:17

    Just use my healthevet through your assigned VA Medical Center. I’ve been using it for years. You have access to all your records and Drs notes and have Secure Messaging with your providers and can renew all your meds yourself instead of going to your local CBOC or calling.

  3. Tom Estus jr November 25, 2019 at 01:38

    That is opening the door to hachers and opening the to more identity theft. Some us do not like the fact that security breachs happen and then we are exposed .then we have todealwiththe fallout.

  4. Larry Hakes November 22, 2019 at 16:47

    VA posted Health records not current!

    Anyone have a support phone number of VA administration responsible to post our health records?

    After trying VA help # of which they said call Apple tech support, Apple support said their health app is working fine so call VA administration and instruct them to be more timely providing updated health records to the Apple health server.

    What a runaround. Too much lost time.

  5. Bruce Schryver November 22, 2019 at 15:20

    Sure…we all must have iPhones. Only the most expensive phone and somehow the VA tolls this as the new tech we all need? I laud the technology that allows this but maybe have a version for Android at the same time? Oh well…someone spent a lot of our healthcare dollars on this….

  6. Etta Mecke November 22, 2019 at 15:19

    I have been reviewing my Health Records for YEARS! Why is this being told it’s NEW?

    • Kathleen Marie Wilson November 28, 2019 at 22:10

      I have been using an android for a long time. I do know it is sometimes not to friendly as it does not fit on the screen right.
      Not sure why you cant use it. I will use my PC if things get to hard to work with.

  7. Jim Augeri November 22, 2019 at 11:19

    Just did this; VA records are currently updating in Health app on my iPhone as I write here. Will be interesting to see how current information is in a while. (Last VA visit was 1 week ago today).

  8. Sophia November 21, 2019 at 15:02

    OK, not sure if someone posted this already…but do not download any apps that people tell you to. If you have an iphone just go to the your Apple Health App > Link Health Records>sign in to MyHealthyVet>get code via email>put 6 digit code in the Apple Health App> confirm email>allow Apple Health App to access VA Health records. These steps are off the top of my head as I already did the steps and it won’t let me back track. The records will come in after you accept conditions of use. Good luck.

    • Ryan Link November 27, 2019 at 11:39

      This is correct! ^^^

  9. F.A. Carroll November 21, 2019 at 12:55

    I agree with Joe Van Sickle’s comment above…I too have secure access my VA health records via MYHEALTHEVET sans third party like Apple or anyother company. So why do I need an App to access the same info, do I really need instant access to my health records. My records are updated in MYHEALTHEVET in reasonable time.
    I see no need for this App, then again I’m an oldtimer who sees no need for instant anything.

    Oh, ya’ll who think the an iPhone costs thousands – perhaps, if ya need to have the latest, but do you really have to have the latest heehaws….also Apple support, in my experience, has been great.

  10. Frederick A. Hesketh November 21, 2019 at 12:45

    It would be great if those of us who only have a computer (like the device I created this message on) instead of having an app, Whatever that is, to use this valuable service.

    Fred Hesketh
    Connecticut, USA.

    • david sharp November 21, 2019 at 13:25

      I do not want civilian companies to have access to my confidential health records. I don’t use facebook, twitter or amazon. all these private companies have no business in “dot gov”. I download my medical records to a thumb drive, then if I need to go to the ER I have what I need and it is SECURE. further all of these internet services have pledged their loyalty to communist china. I absolutely refuse to allow the V.A. to upload my data to Apple corp.

      • Kerry November 21, 2019 at 14:27

        For one thing, Apple doesn’t collect your health data. It’s encrypted end-to-end and never shared. Did you know your browser sends all kinds of data to 3rd party?

        • pRKs November 22, 2019 at 22:24

          Duckduckgo has a mobile app browser that is secure. But as Apple Health App is secure, I would use it first.

    • Nate D Johnson November 25, 2019 at 07:42

      @Frederick A. Hesketh
      Here you are Sir.
      https://www.myhealth.va.gov/mhv-portal-web/user-login

  11. Steve Kjonaas November 21, 2019 at 12:43

    From Home Screen > Swipe to left until you reach the screen that has a Search Bar
    In the Search Bar, type Health
    In the Applications bubble, select Health
    On the bottom of the Health App, select Health Data
    On the Health Data page, select Health Records
    On the Health Records page, select Add Account
    On the Search page, select Dept. of Veterans Affairs
    Select Available to connect
    Log into your VA account
    Follow prompts the rest of the data download
    Enjoy

    Click Reply for any questions or comments

  12. Randy Janis November 21, 2019 at 11:52

    The app is called “Veterans Health Mobile”

  13. Craig Carlton November 21, 2019 at 11:29

    this worked perfectly. Thanks!

  14. Terry Bender November 21, 2019 at 10:20

    I was able to access my VA records thru Apple’s iHeart app – amazing! My question – does myHealthEVet have their own iPhone app? I searched in the app store, but not found.

  15. george clay November 21, 2019 at 10:09

    What is the actual name of the app? Is it “Veterans Health Mobile – VLPHR” ?

  16. Robert S Patterson November 21, 2019 at 09:59

    I tried to access via the iPhone app; went to the VA site; entered my email and password; still waiting on the email to verify my email address. Can’t get any further. Seems this is not quite ready for prime time.

    • J Hernandez November 21, 2019 at 12:31

      I have had to perform a verification code process at least ten times, and I still get a 400 Error message. This is the worse app/service which keeps redirecting me to what appears to be a third party site and keeps asking me to verify even while I am logged in to the VA portal. Terrible and major waste of time and effort. Junky.

      JH

      • Ryan Link November 27, 2019 at 11:43

        Hi JH, please contact the VA API team if you are still having this issue and would like to assist us in testing. We have received scattered reports of authentication problems, although it is working for a majority of Veterans using the Health app.

        Ryan Link
        VA Lighthouse API Support
        Customer Success Manager
        https://developer.va.gov/support/contact-us

  17. George E Carter November 21, 2019 at 09:55

    When is the VA going to start passing out iPhones? If you made the app only for the overpriced iPhone then you should be required to furnish the phone. An iPhone cost $800 up. I paid about $160 for a new Samsung Android that works great, my buddy got his Android for under $100.
    This quote is from a Forbes article “Apple sold 215.8 million iPhones in calendar 2017, and IDC estimates that there were 1.244 billion Android smartphones shipped during the year.”
    Yet the VA builds an app for the smaller market share of very expensive products. Must be a government operation!

    • Chuck Palmer November 21, 2019 at 11:48

      The VA did not create an App!! They created an API (Application Programmatic Interface). iPhone is the only platform that has a Health app that can access your data via APIs. Your complaint should be that Android phone manufacturers should create an APP that does the same. You might have a better chance with Samsung specific devices.

    • Chuck Palmer November 21, 2019 at 11:55

      The VA did NOT create an APP!! They created the API (Application Programming Interface) that an Apple APP uses to retrieve the information. There is not a comparable APP our for Android because no one has created it due to the difficulty to secure the data in the open android environment.

    • Kerry November 21, 2019 at 14:30

      I just got my daughter a $400 Iphone 8. Secondly, the VA has nothing to do with the app. They simply provided the API.

  18. Gregory Benedict Cotten, Ph.D., P.E. November 21, 2019 at 09:04

    Like most things from The VA, sits between impossible and useless…just as others have stated, a senseless hyperlink yo the DS login and all it does is circle back to the login page without ever getting to the data

  19. David Martin November 21, 2019 at 08:52

    For all my Brothers and Sisters wondering how to get the App thanks to this article lacking important details. Go to the App Store on your phone and download it. The App Store says it’s available for IPhone and android users.

    • Craig November 21, 2019 at 11:13

      What did you type in, or can you provide the app icon photo

  20. David Martin November 21, 2019 at 08:28

    Great idea! However you forgot to include the most important thing, THE APP or at least instructions on where to get the damn thing. Ideas are just ideas unless you follow through. As with everything it seems with the VA, it’s so simple, but it’s not.

  21. Shelly Collins November 21, 2019 at 08:24

    Not everyone has an iPhone. Considering they cost over $1k, I will never have one. Be nice if they also had an app for the Android system to cover the rest of us.

    • Ernest James Thurston November 21, 2019 at 10:32

      My thoughts exactly.Most Veterans that use the VA health system are older, Vietnam vets. They carry Trac phones that are not smart phones and definitely not IPhones.

    • J R. November 24, 2019 at 14:12

      I have NO Problems using the website myhealthevet.com, either on my Samsung Galaxy S7 OR Laptop. My medical records & lab results are there to download or view. ** Could it be the VA is Catering to iPhones (Apple) users ? Who knows, but I hope it helps Veterans who have iphones. HOOAH!
      J.R.
      SFC, U.S. ARMY Ret

  22. Andrew Artman November 21, 2019 at 06:14

    So when will the health records app be available for android users ?? , most disabled vets can’t afford a $1500.00 I-phone

    • Kerry November 21, 2019 at 14:32

      Iphones don’t cost $1500. Just got my daughter a new Iphone 8 for $400 with 2 year breakage coverage.

  23. Marilynn Jackson-English November 21, 2019 at 06:03

    ok, we can access it, but I wouldn’t know how to do it based on this article. #WhoWhatWhenHow

    • Bob Mesna November 21, 2019 at 08:55

      No one needs to spend $1,500 on an iPhone. You can buy several models back for 2-$400. Even less if you buy a reconditioned unit.

      • AS November 21, 2019 at 22:16

        @Bob Mesna – even the latest iPhone doesn’t cost $1,500. Check your facts and stop posting your inflammatory remarks that only serve to rile up the people that don’t have iPhones. Dropping the mic…

  24. Vincent J Troiola November 21, 2019 at 04:59

    I just tried to connect through the Apple health app. I got as far as verifying my email address at VA and asking for access code via text. When I click heath data in Apple it takes me to the log in page at VA. I log in and it asks for the access code to be received by text. When I enter it, it goes back to the login page. If I go back to the health app and click on health data and VA, the cycle starts again asking me to login and provide the access code.

  25. Steven Levin November 21, 2019 at 02:23

    About the health app. I’ve looked for it everywhere. I can’t find it. How do I download it? Where can I find it?

    • JAMES WAMBOLD November 21, 2019 at 08:11

      where do I find the app?

      • Richard Clark November 21, 2019 at 10:28

        The Health App on Apple iPhones was added several years ago. If you’re using any version (after iOS 8 – I believe) it’s already on your device. Look for the white app with a heart on it…that’s the Health app. Or you can swipe right until the Search comes up and type Health in the Search bar. It should show up in the results for Applications and Health sections.

        • Jim Hazard November 21, 2019 at 13:06

          Yep have the health app. Nothing there but a little info on my profile. App is under VA Health. After I downloaded it, confusing on how to use it. Gave up.

      • Jim Hazard November 21, 2019 at 11:21

        App is under VA Health. After I downloaded it, confusing on how to use it. Gave up.

  26. Angel L Gonzalez November 21, 2019 at 02:07

    Great tool if it will stay up to date. Last record update reflected on my iPhone is 6 Sep 2019, I had surgery and follow up PT on and after 1 Oct 2019. There is not an update function button that I can find. So how often does the info gets updated?

  27. David Killion November 21, 2019 at 01:40

    Personally I use this feature and it works amazingly for me, I love it. Its also nice to see the VA starting to catch up with the modern world.

    • joe November 21, 2019 at 11:27

      so where did you get the app?

  28. Kenneth Eldridge November 21, 2019 at 00:56

    We don’t need this app on a limited platform like iPhone.. You should’ve made this available to everyone through android.

    • J R. November 24, 2019 at 14:16

      I Agree Kenneth !!!

  29. E L Miller November 21, 2019 at 00:35

    Is an app for android users also available?

  30. Bry Carter November 21, 2019 at 00:32

    This news release is frustrating. It does not identify where to obtain the health app, the specific name to search for in the app store, or a link to the app in the app store. Searching for “health app”, “veteran health app”, “veteran health records”, or “health app for iPhone” provides no app in the list of downloads that resembles an Apple Health App. Please provides specifics.

  31. Pedro Samuel Pereira November 21, 2019 at 00:09

    How do we get access to this new system to access our health records on Iphone?
    Pedro S Pereira

    • Bob Mesna November 21, 2019 at 09:05

      On an iPhone go to the Health App which is included on all iPhones. Scroll down and you will see the connect to health providers. VA is there. Follow the log in instructions and then the info loads. I saw my recent lab results before I got it in the mail or from my doctor. I’m impressed.

    • Bob November 21, 2019 at 09:06

      On an iPhone go to the Health App which is included on all iPhones. Scroll down and you will see the connect to health providers. VA is there. Follow the log in instructions and then the info loads. I saw my recent lab results before I got it in the mail or from my doctor. I’m impressed.

  32. Joe Van Sickle November 21, 2019 at 00:06

    I am a 74 yr. old vet and patient of VA, with a Premium Account, and Myhealthevet secure messaging ;
    I went to the link site “Veterans Health API” above and rather intimidated by all the pages to understand, let alone activate,
    the thing for my iphone.
    Isn’t there someplace where I can see a simpler review to understand the program / benefits, and implement it…?

    Also, with access to MYHEALTHEVET , is there any other benefit for me to access this program….?

    Thanks
    Joe

    • Jim Augeri November 22, 2019 at 11:21

      Presentation of information in the Health app is WAY easier to understand; at least from what I am seeing so far.

  33. Robert R Guerin November 20, 2019 at 23:52

    How do I go about downloading the health app to my iPhone in order to view my VA medical records

    • Leanne Bergeron November 21, 2019 at 08:35

      Hi!

      The Health app should already be downloaded on your iPhone.

  34. Charles l November 20, 2019 at 23:04

    I followed the steps and was granted access but VA data is not updating to the health app. What should I do?

  35. Randy A. Martin November 20, 2019 at 21:56

    Are there any hope of having this for Android platform?

    • pRKs November 22, 2019 at 21:37

      It’s Android that must make it available.

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