The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has announced plans to restart the deployment of its upgraded Oracle Cerner Federal Electronic Health Record (EHR) system in 2026. The relaunch comes after a four-year pause due to significant patient safety concerns, technical challenges, and infrastructure issues.
This renewed effort is set to begin with four VA medical centers in Michigan—Ann Arbor, Battle Creek, Detroit, and Saginaw—marking a pivotal step in the VA’s journey toward modernizing its healthcare infrastructure and improving patient outcomes.
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A Long Road to Improvement
Initially launched in late 2020 at the Mann-Grandstaff VA Medical Center in Spokane, Washington, the EHR system faced numerous hurdles, including scheduling errors, prescription mishandling, and workflow disruptions. These issues caused significant delays in further rollouts and led to a complete pause in 2023.
A VA Inspector General report in 2022 revealed that the system caused harm to at least 149 patients at one facility, including a critical case where a psychiatric referral was lost, pushing a veteran in crisis to call the VA’s suicide hotline.
The program, originally projected to cost $16 billion over a decade, underwent significant scrutiny and redesign during the pause. The VA collaborated closely with Oracle Health to address these challenges, focusing on system stability and user functionality to ensure a safer and more efficient deployment.
Upgrades and Progress
According to VA Deputy Secretary Tanya Bradsher, the 18-month pause allowed the department to “listen to veterans and clinicians, understand the issues, and make improvements.” As a result:
- System Reliability: The upgraded EHR system has achieved significant stability, functioning without outages for 200+ consecutive days in 10 of the last 16 months.
- Veteran Trust: Trust in the system among veterans and clinicians has improved following focused updates and better communication.
The updated system saw success in a joint deployment with the Defense Department at the Captain James A. Lovell Federal Health Care Center in North Chicago. Dr. Robert Buckley, the facility’s director, described the implementation as exceeding expectations during a House hearing in May 2024.
What’s Next for the Michigan Sites?
The Michigan medical centers will begin the preparatory stages for deployment in the coming weeks, with the full system rollout planned for mid-2026. This process involves:
- Upgrading infrastructure to meet system requirements.
- Extensive staff training to ensure familiarity with the platform.
- Continuous evaluation of patient and clinician feedback to guide further refinements.
Dr. Neil Evans, acting program executive director of the VA’s EHRM Integration Office, emphasized the importance of ongoing enhancements, stating, “VA is ready to begin planning for the next Federal EHR deployments in 2026, while at the same time remaining committed to the continuous improvement efforts that have been our focus for the past 18 months.”
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A Unified Vision with the Defense Department
The Oracle Cerner system is designed to create a fully integrated electronic health record platform across the VA and the Department of Defense (DoD). This integration aims to provide seamless care for service members transitioning from active duty to veteran status, eliminating gaps in medical history and enhancing care coordination.
The DoD has already completed its system rollout, setting a strong foundation for the VA’s renewed efforts.
The Broader Impact
The VA’s relaunch of the Oracle Cerner EHR system represents a critical milestone in modernizing its healthcare infrastructure. The improvements aim to rebuild trust among veterans, clinicians, and the public while addressing the systemic issues that plagued the program’s initial implementation.
If successful, the 2026 deployment could redefine healthcare delivery for millions of veterans, providing them with the reliable, efficient, and integrated care they deserve.
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