5 Takeaways from the Health IT Summit
Top health IT leaders across government and industry shared how their efforts are modernizing the federal electronic health record (EHR), investing in emerging technologies, enhancing data interoperability and implementing smarter health care solutions.
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ASTP targets streamlined certification and information-blocking reforms.
The Assistant Secretary for Technology Policy (ASTP) is preparing a deregulatory action to modernize its health IT certification program and reduce compliance burdens, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary Steven Posnack explained.
Posnack said the office is reassessing layers of certification requirements that made sense a decade ago but no longer align with today’s priorities. The updated framework will emphasize bi-directional data exchange, automation in clinical workflows and alignment across agencies like CDC, CMS and HRSA so providers aren’t asked to submit the same data multiple times.
America by Design sets the standard for modern federal services.
Federal leaders are excited about the White House’s new America by Design initiative — which created a National Design Studio and the nation’s first Chief Design Officer. They noted its role as a blueprint for delivering seamless, user-centered digital services.
CMS CIO Patrick Newbold called the new role a “North Star for all of federal government, noting that citizens expect services that “just work” rather than a patchwork of disconnected systems. Industry leaders echoed this push. Maximus’ Monica Rosser said customers now expect government digital experiences to match private-sector standards.
The Veterans Health Administration is piloting AI-powered ambient scribe technology at 10 sites by the end of 2025 to improve both patient and provider experiences, while NIH’s All of Us program is exploring agentic AI to streamline participant enrollment and accelerate precision medicine research.
VA charts the future of its EHR rollout.
The Department of Veterans Affairs is leveraging lessons learned from the War Department’s “run to the finish line” rollout of its electronic health record. Acting Program Executive Director Dr. Neil Evans said the VA will adopt a wave-based deployment strategy that activates three to six medical centers at a time, reducing transition stress and improving interoperability across facilities. 13 new sites are slated to go live in 2026, with a full enterprise deployment goal set for 2031.
The Defense Health Agency is continuing to refine MHS Genesis. MHS Genesis Functional Champion Rear Adm. Tracy Farrill said features like ambient listening and automated coding will soon enhance clinician workflows, supported by a new AI governance strategy that prioritizes modernization in a disciplined, transparent way.
Interoperability and open APIs drive the next phase of EHR modernization.
The Department of Health and Human Services’ fiscal year 2026 discretionary budget allocates funds to a new chief technology office to give developers more bandwidth to integrate advanced capabilities into electronic health records (EHRs). ASTP leader Avinash Shanbhag said the shift will allow developers to focus on AI-driven enhancements such as model context protocols and agent-to-agent interactions, while continuing to advance nationwide data exchange through TEFCA.
Speakers emphasized that open APIs are unlocking new potential for federal health data. CDC’s Kyle Cobb said APIs enable real-time public health data sharing, supported by standardized agreements across states to streamline emergency response and transparency.
Shanbhag called on industry to lead in building interoperable systems that can “kill the clipboard” and deliver seamless digital health experiences. By leveraging APIs and government-backed standards, officials said the ecosystem is poised to expand EHR functionality, strengthen public health data sharing and support more innovative, patient-centered applications.
Industry partnerships expand secure, connected care.
Secure connectivity and modern infrastructure are essential to support AI-driven technology in health and reach patients wherever they live. Rose Mata, senior director of federal healthcare, education and finance at Verizon, outlined steps agencies can take to better protect and manage data for improved visibility and scalability.
To handle the growing demands of AI, Verizon is launching AI Connect within its FedRAMP-High Ready government cloud. The service will link agencies’ multi-cloud environments, provide greater access control and use dark fiber to support resource-intensive workloads. Mata said the model aligns with an “everything-as-a-service” approach that reduces reliance on costly legacy systems.