VA Expands Oracle EHR Rollout to Four Medical Centers in Ohio and Kentucky
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The latest rollout follows the deployment of Oracle EHR at four VA medical centers in Michigan earlier this year.
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has deployed Oracle’s electronic health record (EHR) system at four medical centers in Ohio and Kentucky, marking the second wave of EHR rollouts in 2026 as the agency continues efforts to modernize its health IT infrastructure.
The deployment went live on June 7 at Cincinnati VA Medical Center, Chillicothe VA Medical Center, Dayton VA Medical Center, and the Cincinnati VA Medical Center–Fort Thomas campus. According to a VA announcement, the implementation impacts more than 7,200 clinicians and staff across the facilities.
The latest rollout follows the deployment of Oracle EHR at four VA medical centers in Michigan earlier this year. Those facilities became the first VA sites in several years to receive the system after the department paused most new deployments in 2023 to address technical problems, patient safety concerns, and system performance issues.
With the Ohio and Kentucky implementations completed, the VA has now finished eight of its planned 13 EHR deployments scheduled for 2026.
The Oracle EHR modernization initiative began in 2018 when Cerner signed a contract with the VA to replace the agency’s legacy electronic health record system. Oracle acquired Cerner in 2022 and assumed responsibility for the project.
The program has faced significant scrutiny over the years due to reliability challenges, workflow disruptions, rising costs, and concerns about patient safety. These issues prompted the VA to halt most new deployments while corrective measures were implemented.
In late 2024, the department announced plans to restart deployments beginning in 2026. At that time, only six of the VA’s approximately 170 medical centers had adopted the Oracle platform.
The VA said it has since resolved hundreds of issues identified at the original deployment sites and plans to hire approximately 400 additional staff members to support ongoing implementations. The department also reported positive feedback from clinicians and leaders at the Michigan facilities that adopted the system earlier this year.
The agency's next deployment phase is scheduled for August, when three VA medical centers in Indiana are expected to transition to the Oracle EHR platform. Additional implementations are planned for October at the Alaska VA Healthcare System and the Louis Stokes Cleveland VA Medical Center.
The VA has said the new EHR system is intended to improve interoperability with military health records, support continuity of care for veterans, and replace aging technology currently used across the department.
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