The Department of Veterans Affairs will enter its own electronic health record system into the competition to be selected as the Department of Defense's new EHR vendor.
VA Secretary Eric Shinseki said the VA plans to create a more advanced version of its Veterans Health Information Systems and Technology Architecture, technology which would be equal to any commercial software placing a bid, according to a NextGov report.
However, if the DoD selects a different system, the VA will "go after that," said Mr. Shinseki in the report.
A common system between the two departments would ease record-sharing and would be expected to help reduce the backlog of military member's claims. In 2009, President Obama called on the departments to begin work on a "seamless system of integration" that would allow veterans' medical records to be shared electronically, and in 2011, both departments announced plans for the development of a single, joint EHR system.
However in February 2013, the plan for a joint system was abandoned after costs spiraled close to $30 billion.
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