Healthcare IT

ONC and CMS are inviting payers, providers, EHR developers, and intermediaries to join voluntary 10–12-week sprints testing FHIR-based electronic prior authorization workflows. Expressions of interest are due November 20, 2026; the effort is not a contract solicitation or compliance review, but its findings may inform standards and guidance before certain health plans’ January 1, 2027, API implementation deadline.

CMS will let states defer enforcement of Medicaid work requirements through June 30, 2027, while requiring them to continue assessing beneficiary compliance. States must request the flexibility in mitigation plans by December 11, 2026, creating more time to test eligibility systems, verification, notifications, and support processes.

The Senate Appropriations Committee proposed $173.2 billion in FY 2027 base discretionary funding, including $3.7 billion for VA construction and $28.6 billion for Department of War military construction and family housing. The proposal points to potential construction and health IT demand, but it is not enacted and does not establish specific solicitations or awards.

The Department of Veterans Affairs and Department of Defense joined the HHS-led TEFCA network on November 5, expanding secure health-record exchange across military, veterans’ and civilian care settings. The move highlights sustained federal demand for interoperable health IT, secure data routing and FHIR API capabilities, but the announcement identifies no new solicitation or contract value.

University Hospitals has no estimated restoration date for its public websites and MyChart, which were taken offline after unusual server activity on October 22; its clinician intranet remains operational. The incident is a market signal for healthcare cybersecurity, incident response, and recovery capabilities, but no UH solicitation or confirmed procurement has been identified.

HHS plans a six-month sole-source bridge to maintain employee access to Anthropic’s Claude Enterprise and Government services after discounted access expired October 31, 2026. The arrangement’s value and procurement details remain undisclosed as the department considers broader competition through multiple-award BPAs.

The National Association of VA Physicians and Dentists asked Congress to pause additional Oracle Health EHR deployments until independent patient-safety assessments, corrective actions, and clinician-informed site-readiness reviews are completed. The request is not an enacted VA decision, but it adds uncertainty to rollout schedules and reinforces scrutiny of implementation evidence and readiness.

The Department of Veterans Affairs completed its 2026 Federal EHR rollout at 13 hospitals, including Cleveland and Anchorage, and 16 associated clinics. VA plans deployments at 26 hospitals in 2027 toward a systemwide 2031 target, while a reported $17 billion contract ceiling increase and three one-year options extend Oracle Health’s work amid congressional scrutiny of cost, schedule, and performance.

The **Department of Veterans Affairs** added or updated 15 electronic health record features beginning in late September, including a consolidated clinical timeline and direct ultrasound-image transfer into the federal EHR. Facility deployments in **Alaska** and **Cleveland** are expected to start the week of October 26, creating near-term implementation activity for EHR integration and clinical workflow contractors; no contract, solicitation, funding, or vendor was identified.

CMS announced nearly $219 million in FY2026 Rural Health Transformation Program funding for Georgia, which committed its full allocation to initiatives across 126 rural and partially rural counties. The investment may generate state-level demand for workforce, mobile and telehealth services, facility upgrades, and health IT, but CMS has not identified specific solicitations, awards, or procurement contacts.

Deloitte recommends that state Medicaid agencies embed AI in broader Medicaid Management Information System modernization to reduce administrative friction, strengthen payment integrity, and improve operations. The analysis is not a solicitation or award, but highlights potential procurement needs in modular systems, data integration, responsible-AI governance, workflow automation, security, and workforce readiness.