Washington, D.C. – Eastern Washington Congresswoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers (WA-05) today released the following statement in support of terminating Oracle Cerner’s electronic health record (EHR) system:

“The Oracle Cerner electronic health record system has been a complete failure. It has caused serious harm to patients, devastated morale amongst employees and providers, and created a crisis of confidence for veterans,” said Rodgers. “I have long supported the goal of modernizing our health record system to better care for our nation’s heroes. Unfortunately, despite billions of dollars and every possible opportunity for improvement, it’s become abundantly clear that there is no coming back from the mess the Department of Veterans Affairs has made with this deeply broken system. It’s time to pull the plug. We need to go back to a system that works immediately and deliver on our promise to give veterans in Eastern Washington the best care our country has to offer.”

In addition to her statement, Cathy today announced her support for the Department of Veterans Affairs Electronic Health Record Modernization Termination Act (H.R. 608), which would officially end the Oracle Cerner EHR system. This comes just days after the Department of Veterans Affairs announced that future deployments of the new Electronic Health Record (EHR) system would be halted indefinitely.

NOTE: Cathy has demanded accountability and called for increased transparency from the Department of Veterans Affairs since the EHR system was rolled out at facilities in Spokane and Walla Walla. Her efforts intensified last summer after an investigation found 149 veterans were harmed by the system and that VA leadership manipulated data concerning training proficiency on the new system. You can view a full timeline of her actions here.

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