Veterans Affairs: Leading Practices Can Help Achieve IT Reform Goals

What GAO Found

VA’s fiscal year 2026 budget reflects a range of planned reforms: investing over $3.5 billion to hasten implementation of electronic health record modernization, reducing IT expenditures by about $500 million to retire outdated legacy systems and reassess IT initiatives, and streamlining administrative practices leading to about $40 million in savings. GAO has identified leading practices and selected questions that can assist in achieving IT reform goals.

Figure: Leading Practices and Selected Key Questions for Agency Reform Efforts

Why GAO Did This Study

VA depends on critical IT systems to manage benefits and provide care to millions of veterans and their families. The department’s investment in IT is substantial—VA plans to spend about $7.3 billion in fiscal year 2026.

VA operates a centralized organization, the Office of Information Technology, to plan and execute most IT management functions. This office is responsible for providing direction and guidance on IT acquisition and management.

However, VA has a long history of failed IT modernization efforts. For example, after three failed attempts between 2001 and 2018, VA began implementing its fourth effort in 2020 to modernize its legacy health information system. However, in 2023 it halted further system deployments due to widespread concerns. In December 2024, VA announced plans for additional deployments restarting in 2026. VA has experienced similar weaknesses in acquiring major IT systems, managing its IT workforce, tracking software licenses, and standardizing cloud computing procurement.

GAO’s statement (1) identifies key reform elements of VA’s fiscal year 2026 IT budget request, and (2) describes leading practices and selected questions for assessing agency reforms.