Today we’re highlighting an important op-ed written by our SOAA’s Austin Higgins, a U.S. Air Force veteran and technology strategy leader. His article addresses a major issue affecting millions of veterans today: the outdated and fragmented healthcare record system used by the Department of Veterans Affairs.
In his op-ed on Daily Caller, Austin argues that completing the VA’s Electronic Health Record (EHR) modernization effort is not simply a technical improvement; it is a healthcare necessity. When veterans cannot access seamless medical care, the consequences are real: delayed treatment, missing information, administrative burdens, and an increased risk of mistakes.
Austin shares his own experience leaving active duty and having to physically carry printed and faxed copies of his medical records to medical appointments. Like many veterans, he also had to scan and manually submit documentation when applying for VA benefits. These delays and inefficiencies are not just frustrating–they can prevent veterans from receiving timely care.
The VA’s legacy system, VistA, was built decades ago and has since been customized into over a hundred different versions across the country. That fragmentation makes true modernization nearly impossible without a complete transition to a unified platform.
Austin’s message is clear: the VA has done much of the hard work, and now it must finish the mission. Veterans deserve a healthcare system that works as reliably as the people it serves.
Read the full op-ed here: https://dailycaller.com/
