The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) on March 19 ordered a strategic review of its Cerner electronic health record (EHR) modernization program being rolled out in the home state of U.S. Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA), who argued the system currently is impacting her constituents in “dangerous and unacceptable” ways.
“The system is not an improvement, at least not yet,” Rep. McMorris Rodgers wrote in a March 17 letter sent to VA Secretary Denis McDonough, noting that the new system “has put new stress” on the Mann-Grandstaff VA Medical Center in Spokane, Wash.
The overall EHR system update, which launched in October 2020, is part of a $16 billion program to migrate the medical records of U.S. military veterans to a Cerner-built cloud system and to launch new user and patient interfaces.
Allegations by Rep. McMorris Rodgers followed the release of a U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) report instructing the VA to end rollout of the system beyond the initial launch site in Spokane because it requires fixes before it causes the entire system to fail.
For instance, Rep. McMorris Rodgers continues to receive an increasing number of complaints at her Spokane and Colville, Wash., offices about the system, typically concerning the new patient portal, prescriptions and training, according to her letter to McDonough.
“I am getting reports of veterans not receiving their prescriptions when needed or receiving the wrong prescriptions,” Rep. McMorris Rodgers wrote. “This seems to be especially troublesome when information from veterans’ health records gets mixed up with the Cerner EHR at Fairchild Air Force Base.
“These impacts are dangerous and unacceptable,” she wrote. “This patient portal is not only unfamiliar but less functional than the old VA patient portal.”
The congresswoman requested that the VA Secretary look into such issues and answer several questions, including what the productivity level is now at Mann-Grandstaff compared to before the Cerner EHR was installed in October 2020, and what steps are being taken to protect staff morale and retention while the disruption from the EHR implementation is being addressed.
The VA said on Friday that Secretary McDonough has conducted an initial assessment and ordered a strategic review not to exceed 12 weeks that consists of a full assessment of the ongoing EHR modernization program.
“A successful EHR deployment is essential in the delivery of lifetime, world-class health care for our veterans,” said McDonough in a statement. “After a rigorous review of our most-recent deployment at Mann-Grandstaff VA Medical Center, it is apparent that a strategic review is necessary. VA remains committed to the Cerner Millennium solution, and we must get this right for veterans.”