What Happened?
A Government Accountability Office (GAO) review found that 58 of 71 selected VA staff users said the system had increased or greatly increased patient safety risks, as the department moves to speed up deployments. The GAO, the federal watchdog that audits government programs for Congress, found that the Department of Veterans Affairs needs an updated cost estimate and schedule of its new electronic health record system.
The VA increased the ceiling on its contract with Oracle, the technology company running the system, from about $10 billion to about $27 billion this past August. The VA paused most rollouts in April 2023 after veterans and clinicians said the system was not meeting expectations, including concerns about patient safety and reliability.
Why Does it Matter to Me?
Of 71 VA staff interviewed by GAO in 2023 and 2024, 58 said the new system had increased or greatly increased patient safety risks.
In a separate VA survey conducted in September 2024, only 13 percent of respondents agreed or strongly agreed that the system made them as efficient as possible. Seventy-five percent disagreed or strongly disagreed.
Both Sides, Now
VA and Oracle Health argued that the pause, which began in April 2023, allowed them to enhance the software.
Opponents say the system should not be expanded until documented safety problems are fixed. The VA Office of Inspector General reported in July 2022 that the electronic health record system's "unknown queue" caused multiple patient-harm events, in which orders were not routed as expected and care was disrupted. In March 2024, the same office reported pharmacy-related patient-safety problems tied to the system's rollout, including usability problems and workarounds that contributed to risks.
GAO warned that VA had not fully carried out 16 of 18 recommendations covering cost estimates, scheduling, program management, user satisfaction, and operational testing as the department prepared to accelerate deployments.
Oracle America Inc. filed lobbying disclosures for the Third Quarter and Fourth Quarter of 2025 and the First Quarter and Second Quarter of this year, each reporting $20,000 in lobbying spending through Capitol Consulting Group LLC on issues related to VA electronic health record modernization.
What Happens Next?
The House Veterans' Affairs Committee, chaired by Rep. Mike Bost (R-IL), is scheduled to hold a hearing titled "Beyond Go-Live: VA Electronic Health Record Modernization Status Update" on Sept. 2. Lawmakers have expressed lingering unease about restarting deployments even as VA and Oracle have argued the pause allowed them to improve the software.
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