Subcommittee on VA Technology Modernization Holds Roundtable
By PVA National Staff
On December 11, Roscoe Butler, PVA’s Associate Legislative Director, participated in a roundtable discussion with the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee, Subcommittee on Technology Modernization titled, “Veterans Engagement in Technology Modernization at the Department of Veterans Affairs.” The purpose of the roundtable was to hear from VSOs about how VA has engaged VSOs at the national and local levels on the development, implementation, and impact of technology projects at VA.
Mr. Butler informed the Subcommittee that PVA National staff have attended numerous meetings at VA regarding various technology projects. Unfortunately, many of these meetings lacked sufficient detail to help us understand the current status of program development and implementation. Although some of PVA’s field staff have reported receiving briefings from VA at the local level regarding IT modernization projects, mainly regarding telehealth, the majority have indicated they had no engagement with VA regarding many of the key technology modernization initiatives underway at VA today.
Mr. Butler emphasized that IT modernization projects like the new electronic medical record, expansion of the caregiver program, and the new community care program are all important projects. He called on VA to be more transparent at the national and local levels with VSOs about these as well as other important IT modernization projects.
