VA speeds EHR rollout as GAO says key safeguards remain unfinished
The Department of Veterans Affairs is accelerating its national electronic health-record rollout even as the Government Accountability Office says most recommendations tied to earlier problems remain unfinished.
In testimony publicly released September 1 and published September 2, the GAO said VA had fully implemented four of 18 recommendations as of August 2026. Fourteen were not fully implemented, including recommendations addressing cost controls, schedule documentation, user readiness, trouble-ticket management and independent operational assessment.
The issue matters to veterans because the Federal Electronic Health Record can change how facilities handle appointments, secure messages, prescriptions, notifications and medical records. The effects vary by facility and deployment phase.
GAO says cost and schedule controls remain incomplete
GAO said VA still had not produced an updated, independent total life-cycle cost estimate for the modernization program. VA had provided Congress with a notional schedule, but GAO said the department had not supplied enough detailed documentation to assess whether the accelerated plan follows leading scheduling practices.
Those gaps matter as VA pursues a current plan to complete approximately 170 medical-center deployments by 2031. The target is an agency plan, not a guaranteed final completion date.
GAO also said 10 priority recommendations involving user satisfaction, change management, trouble-ticket handling and independent operational assessment had not been fully addressed as of August. The watchdog warned that future deployments could prolong management and usability challenges seen during earlier rollouts and could leave users without optimal preparation for the new system.
GAO’s findings describe elevated management and oversight risk. They do not state that current deployments are unsafe or that the system has caused patient harm.
VA lists 11 medical-center deployments for 2026
VA’s deployment schedule, updated September 8, lists 11 medical centers in its 2026 schedule. Four Michigan facilities went live April 11, four facilities in southern Ohio and Kentucky went live June 6, and three Indiana hospitals went live August 22: the Fort Wayne VA Medical Center, Marion VA Medical Center and Richard L. Roudebush VA Medical Center in Indianapolis.
VA’s remaining 2026 schedule lists the Alaska VA Healthcare System in Anchorage for October 24. It lists the Louis Stokes Cleveland VA Medical Center for October but does not show a final day.
VA says the Indiana deployment is part of an effort to standardize the system and improve accountability as the department resumes a rollout that was paused in 2023. VA also reported that Indian Health Service leaders observed Indiana go-live operations on August 24 to gather lessons for IHS’s separate Oracle Health-based PATH deployment, which began with a Lawton, Oklahoma, service unit scheduled for September 26.
GAO said it had verified that VA deployed the system at multiple later sites without critical or high-severity issues, reducing one category of deployment risk. The watchdog said that improvement does not resolve broader gaps involving cost documentation, schedule controls, user readiness and independent operational testing.
What veterans may notice during a transition
Veterans whose facilities are moving to the Federal Electronic Health Record should watch for facility-specific VA notices. During transition periods, online appointment availability may be limited, some appointments may be rescheduled, and appointments may take longer while staff learn the new system.
VA says veterans may see different appointment letters, after-visit summaries and care-team names when using secure messaging or scheduling. During parts of the transition, notifications may come through both My HealtheVet on VA.gov and My VA Health.
Veterans should review the email address in their VA.gov profile and keep both residential and mailing addresses current. VA says the new system does not support the same kind of temporary address used previously. Veterans who relocate for part of the year may need to update their mailing address so prescriptions and letters reach them.
The next accountability tests are the October Anchorage and Cleveland deployments, VA’s response to the unresolved GAO recommendations, and whether the department provides Congress with stronger cost and schedule documentation as the faster rollout continues.
Sources
- U.S. Government Accountability Office testimony
- VA EHR Modernization deployment schedule
- VA patient guidance on My HealtheVet and the Federal EHR
- VA announcement on the Indiana rollout
Look for updates to this story
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