DHA plans shift in approach for electronic health record follow-on

The Defense Health Agency has decided to go in a different direction for the follow-on contract to operate and maintain the military’s electronic health record, which was declared fully deployed in the spring of 2024.

DHA previously signaled it would take the same approach used in 2015 for the original single award to Leidos, which won the 10-year contract that designated it the lead systems integrator. The Oracle Health EHR, known as Cerner in 2015, and the Henry Schein dental record are part of the systems of systems known as MHS Genesis.

But DHA is now looking to set up the new contract with a more modular approach that brings a “fundamentally different and more competitive acquisition strategy” to the MHS Genesis ecosystem, the agency said in a Monday Sam.gov notice.

As DHA works on that blueprint, the agency is planning an extension of the contract with Leidos for another potential 12-month period that also lays out its pathway for the shift away from a single lead integrator.

One key priority for DHA and the Leidos-led team involves the migration of the EHR into Oracle’s cloud computing infrastructure, a move aimed at enabling communications between the MHS Genesis solution itself and military treatment facilities around the world.

DHA’s justification and approval notice for the extension indicates the agency will work to establish a direct relationship with Oracle for the hosting responsibilities during the bridge period.

Certain software licenses will also transition away from Leidos during the bridge period as DHA enters into new license maintenance and subscription agreements with software-as-a-service product providers.

Those key action items are part of DHA’s larger effort to work with Leidos on completing cloud migration activities, finalizing system documentation and transitioning responsibilities to additional contractors.