The House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs has cleared the establishment of the Subcommittee on Technology Modernization and named Rep. Jim Banks, R-Ind., as chairman.
House Committee Chairman Phil Roe, R-Tenn., and ranking member Tim Walz, D-Minn., announced June 20 that the new subcommittee will supervise the Department of Veterans Affairs‘ tech projects such as the Electronic Health Record Modernization program, the committee reported Thursday.
VA awarded a potential 10-year, $10 billion contract to Cerner in May for EHR update and deployment support.
“Congress has a duty to conduct rigorous oversight every step of the way,” Roe said.
Walz mentioned that the subcommittee will allow Congress to monitor VA’s IT modernization initiative.
Reps. Conor Lamb, D-Pa., Jack Bergman, R-Mich; Mike Coffman, R-Colo. and Scott Peters, D-Calif., aside from Roe and Walz, comprise the subcommittee.
They noted that the electronic interchange of health records between VA and the Defense Department is needed to provide quality and timely healthcare for service members and veterans.