Veterans Health Administration | The Contracting Education Academy

March 27, 2017 By AMK

VA Secretary promises decision on whether to go to commercial health records

Newly confirmed Veterans Affairs Secretary David Shulkin promised last week his department would decide by July whether to move to a commercial health records system.

It’s a decision Shulkin said should have been made years ago.

“From my perspective, I wish this decision had been made by a prior secretary,” said Shulkin, speaking at an event hosted by Politico. “It’s been kicked down the road. If I could back up time, I believe it’s a mistake to not have made a decision with [the Defense Department] at the time. I’m not saying who made the mistake.”

Keep reading this article at: http://www.nextgov.com/health/2017/03/va-secretary-promises-decision-whether-go-commercial-health-records/136337

March 5, 2015 By AMK

Critics warn DOD’s EHR contract could mean ‘vendor lock and health data isolation’

A defense think tank says the government may regret its plan to lock the U.S. Defense Department into a 10-year contract with an electronic health-record vendor.

The Center for a New American Security released a report that sharply criticizes the department’s procurement process for a new EHR system, which is expected to cost $11 billion over the life of the contract and has attracted fierce competition among four bidding teams.

“DOD is about to procure another major electronic (health-record) system that may not be able to stay current with—or even lead—the state-of-the-art, or work well with parallel systems in the public or private sector,” warn authors, who include retired Gen. H. Hugh Shelton and former Veterans Affairs Chief Technology Officer Peter Levin.

“We are concerned that a process that chooses a single commercial ‘winner,’ closed and proprietary, will inevitably lead to vendor lock and health-data isolation,” they conclude.

Keep reading this article at: http://www.modernhealthcare.com/article/20150213/NEWS/150219965/critics-warn-dods-ehr-contract-could-mean-vendor-lock-and-health

August 30, 2013 By AMK

VHA could save $24M with wider use of purchase cards

Wider use of purchase cards could save the Veterans Health Administration $24 million annually, a report from the Veterans Affairs Department office of inspector general says.

Using purchase cards saves money because writing purchase orders is more time-consuming and complex. The banks that provide purchase cards also offer rebates, around 2 percent, for money spent on the cards, says the OIG report, dated Aug. 9. The VHA spent about $3 billion on purchases worth $3,000 or less in fiscal 2012, earning it more than $65 million in rebates.

From April 2011 through March 2012, VA medical facilities did not use purchase cards for $432 million worth of purchases under $3,000. For $244 million of that spending, the OIG found they had acceptable reasons not to use the cards. Some vendors don’t accept purchase cards, and the VA can’t use them to pay veterans for pharmacy copayments or tort claims.

For the remaining $188 million, spent on medical supplies, office equipment, patient transportation, employee training and more, the VA could have used purchase cards, the report says. The OIG estimated that it could’ve saved $20 million in processing costs and could’ve earned about $4 million in rebates.

Keep reading this article at: http://www.fiercegovernment.com/story/vha-could-save-24m-wider-use-purchase-cards/2013-08-13

Newly confirmed Veterans Affairs Secretary David Shulkin promised last week his department would decide by July whether to move to a commercial health records system.

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