VA deploys electronic health record system to hospitals in Cleveland, Anchorage

WASHINGTON – The Department of Veterans Affairs on Saturday deployed the Federal Electronic Health Record system at the Louis Stokes Cleveland VA Medical Center in Cleveland, Ohio and the Alaska VA Healthcare System in Anchorage. The system was also deployed at 16 standalone clinics associated with those medical centers throughout Ohio and Alaska.

VA has deployed the Federal EHR at 13 hospitals this year under the department’s accelerated schedule. These new deployments mean more than 780,000 Veterans and 42,000 VA clinicians and staff across the U.S. are using the new system and providing more connected, efficient and patient-centered experiences for Veterans.

The rollout in Cleveland and Anchorage means more than 163,000 Veterans and 7,800 staff in those locations will now benefit from:

The seamless, hassle-free transfer of military health records among VA, Department of War and other federal partners.
The integration of health information from private sector facilities into VA’s care for Veterans.
Medical appointments that enable VA doctors and nurses to spend more time with patients and less time struggling with technology.
Less time undergoing duplicative tests because prior test results can’t be found.
An increased ability of VA facilities to share best medical practices with each other.
Improved continuity of care when Veterans transfer among facilities or need emergency care at facilities they’ve never visited.

“VA has fulfilled its goal of deploying this new system to 13 hospitals in 2026, a stark turnaround from the nearly two-year delay seen under the prior administration,” said VA Deputy Secretary Paul Lawrence, Ph.D. “The success we saw this year lays the groundwork for deployments in 26 hospitals in 2027, and meeting our goal of ensuring EHR is in every VA facility by 2031.”

During the Biden Administration, this crucial project was nearly dormant for almost two years, but under President Trump the effort is now back on track. The Trump Administration’s VA got there by:

Fixing hundreds of problems related to the initial rollout of the EHR system at the six original VA sites. Some of these related to efforts by local VA facilities to customize the system, which only complicated the process. Saturday’s rollout focuses on a standardized system that will put all VA facilities on the same page and remove the complexities that caused delays.
Eliminating the bureaucracy that was holding the project back. Under the Biden Administration, decisions related to EHR modernization were left to several councils that held up key decisions. VA replaced that system with a single council that answers to top VA leaders, increasing accountability and making it easier to find and implement common sense decisions.
Getting local facilities more involved. As VA’s lead official on the EHR rollout, VA Deputy Secretary Paul Lawrence visited all 13 deployment sites in 2026 and engaged directly with facility leaders at each location to answer questions and make sure these sites were ready to go.
Hiring more people to ensure the rollout goes smoothly. VA has already hired dozens of staff, with plans for more, to help with the rollout across the country.

Last weekend’s effort built on the success of VA’s deployments in Michigan in April, southern Ohio and Kentucky in June, and Indiana in August under VA’s accelerated schedule. With 2026 deployments completed, VA is scheduled to deploy the system at an additional 26 medical centers in 2027, starting with four hospitals in Wisconsin and Michigan in January:

Clement J. Zablocki VAMC (Milwaukee, Wisconsin)
Tomah VAMC (Tomah, Wisconsin)
William S. Middleton Memorial Veterans’ Hospital (Madison, Wisconsin)
Oscar G. Johnson Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Facility (Iron Mountain, Michigan)

For more information visit the EHRM program and the Federal EHR.

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