News
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: "State Program Helps Veterans Start Businesses" (5/6/2012)
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: “State Program Helps Veterans Start Businesses” (5/6/2012)
The Wisconsin Economic Development Corp. will put $150,000 into a new fund aimed at seeding start-up companies run by military Veterans and helping them to hit the ground running. The fund will be managed by Veteran Entrepreneurial Transfer, Inc., a Milwaukee nonprofit group formed a little more than a year ago with a two-year, $3.2 million contract from the VA Innovation Initiative.
AOL Government: "Innovation in Government: Creating VA's Innovation Initiative" (4/11/2012)
AOL Government: “Innovation in Government: Creating VA’s Innovation Initiative” (4/11/2012)
April 11, 2012 - Twenty-first century organizations have a variety of powerful tools to obtain new ideas from both inside and outside their organization. In the federal government today, the Department of Veterans Affairs has become a leader in implementing new ways to innovate. VAi2 was launched in 2010 as part of the Department-wide transformation effort led by Secretary Eric K. Shinseki, Deputy Secretary W. Scott Gould, and Chief of Staff John R. Gingrich.
VA Launches "Project REACH" Contest to Help Homeless Find Vital Services (3/19/2012)
VA Launches “Project REACH” Contest to Help Homeless Find Vital Services
March 19, 2012 - The Department of Veterans Affairs, in collaboration with the Department of Housing and Urban Development, the Department of Health and Human Services, and the Jon Bon Jovi Soul Foundation, launched a new contest today to help the people who help the homeless. It challenges the developer community to create easy, mobile access to resources that the homeless need, when they need it and where they can get it.
OSEHRA Announces First Board of Directors (3/5/2012)
OSEHRA Announces First Board of Directors
March 5, 2012 - OSEHRA, the nonprofit organization dedicated to accelerating innovation in electronic health record software, today named three industry leaders to its inaugural board of directors. OSEHRA was established in August 2011 as a VAi2 special project.
Federal News Radio: "VA Initiative Revives Doctor's House Call with Modern Twist" (12/12/11)
VA Initiative Revives Doctor’s House Call with Modern Twist
December 12, 2011 - Federal News Radio interviews VAi2 Director Jonah Czerwinski about how VA telehealth innovations are improving access to health care for Veterans using cutting-edge technology. A new online care pilot in partnership with American Well aims to give Veterans an array of options to contact doctors and support services, regardless of physical location.
Wall Street Journal: "Military Veterans Prepare for a New Role" (12/8/2011)
Military Veterans Prepare for a New Role
December 8, 2011 - The Wall Street Journal reports on how VETransfer's VAi2-funded business accelerator is helping Veterans become civilian entrepreneurs.
Government Computer News: "VA Program Makes Online House Calls on Vets" (11/29/2011)
Real Doctors, Onscreen: VA Program Makes Online House Calls on Vets
November 29, 2011 - A new VAi2 pilot program will allow Veterans in the Midwest to access behavioral health, oncology, and post-operative care services wherever they have web access.
NextGov: "Digital Badges for Vets Contest" (11/21/2011)
Digital Badges for Vets Contest
November 21, 2011 - Veterans can have a hard time translating skills learned in the military into a neat summary on a resume, so the Veterans Affairs Department, with help from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, has kicked off a contest to develop digital badges.
New York Times: "For Job Hunters, Digital Merit Badges" (11/19/2011)
For Job Hunters, Digital Merit Badges
November 19, 2011 - The MacArthur Foundation is putting millions of dollars into a competition to spur interest in a new type of badge – one that people can display not on their clothing but on a web site, blog, or Facebook page while they are looking for a job. The federal Departments of Education and Veterans Affairs will jointly award $25,000 for the best badge concept and prototype that serves Veterans seeking jobs.
InformationWeek: "VA Launches Telemed Pilot Project" (11/14/2011)
VA Launches Telemed Pilot Project
November 14, 2011 - The US Department of Veterans Affairs, through its annual VAi2 Industry Innovation Competition, recently selected American Well and SweetSpot Diabetes Care, Inc. to collaborate on separate initiatives that will bring telehealth services to Veterans in their homes.
CraigConnects: "Big Accomplishments at VA" (11/10/2011)
Big Accomplishments at VA
November 10, 2011 - Craigslist founder Craig Newmark praises recent VA innovation accomplishments, including VAi2 efforts like employee and industry competitions, tablets for clinicians, open source EHR, and Blue Button adoption by the private sector.
NPR: "A Business Incubator Gives Funding and Jobs to Vets" (10/25/2011)
A Business Incubator Gives Funding and Jobs to Vets
October 25, 2011 - NPR covers VETransfer’s business incubator, a VAi2 pilot project that connects Veteran entrepreneurs to financing and equips them with the resources and knowledge to get their ventures off the ground.
VAntagePoint: "A Good Idea Is a Terrible Thing to Waste" (10/24/2011)
A Good Idea Is a Terrible Thing to Waste
October 24, 2011 - VA Public Affairs Specialist and Veteran Gary Hicks writes for VAntage Point about VAi2 – VA’s new approach to finding ways to cut through red tape and fix what is broken.
MacArthur Foundation: "Badges for Heroes Challenge Announced" (9/15/2011)
Badges for Heroes Challenge Announced
September 15, 2011 - Secretary Duncan announced that the Department of Education is joining the Department of Veterans Affairs Innovation Initiative (VAi2) in making a commitment to award a $25,000 prize for the best badge concept and prototype that serves Veterans seeking well-paying jobs in today’s economy. VA will join Mozilla, the MacArthur Foundation, and the Departments of Education and Labor to support and sponsor the “Badges for Heroes Challenge.”
Healthcare IT News: "Industry Move Drives Major Blue Button Adoption" (9/13/2011)
Industry Move Drives Major Blue Button Adoption
September 13, 2011 - Federal officials announced that the Blue Button program launched by the Department of Veterans Affairs is going mainstream. It has extended its reach beyond VA and is now supported by healthcare providers and health plans, with availability already extended to millions of Americans.
White House Blog: "Startup Stories: Supporting Veteran Entrepreneurs" (8/5/2011)
Startup Stories: Supporting Veteran Entrepreneurs
August 5, 2011 - Theodore Lasser, Executive Director of Veteran Entrepreneurial Transfer (VETransfer) – a 2010 VAi2 Industry Innovation Competition awardee – blogs for the White House about the Veteran-focused business incubator his organization is piloting in partnership with VAi2.
Washington Business Journal: "When a Procurement Is Not a Procurement" (8/4/2011)
When a Procurement Is Not a Procurement
August 4, 2011 - Federal agencies – with endorsement from the White House – are increasingly tapping a parallel universe of what are known as “prizes and challenges” to bypass the FAR and agency procurement processes and bring innovation to government. For example, the Veterans Affairs Department announced last month a $50,000 prize competition to encourage more widespread installation and use of Blue Button for downloading personal health records.
AOL Government: "Mobile Apps for Government Gaining Ground" (7/20/2011)
Mobile Apps for Government Gaining Ground
July 20, 2011 - Among the mobile applications for government being showcased at the 35th annual FOSE Exposition was an iPad app being tested by VA physicians working with Veterans. The app was developed by Agilex Technologies, Inc. as part of a VAi2 project.
VAntagePoint: "VA Begins Implementation of Open Source EHR" (7/1/2011)
VA Begins Implementation of Open Source EHR
July 1, 2011 - VA CTO Peter Levin and VAi2 Senior Advisor Mike O’Neill explain the role of the Custodial Agent as the governing body for VA’s open source electronic health record (EHR) community.
White House Blog: "VA Innovations Serve Veteran Entrepreneurs" (5/20/2011)
VA Innovations Serve Veteran Entrepreneurs as Part of Small Business Week
May 20, 2011 - VAi2 Director Jonah Czerwinski blogs for the White House about two new business incubators being piloted by VAi2 that will help Veteran entrepreneurs get their start by integrating existing services and offering new forms of business support.
White House Blog: "Sunshine Week at the Department of Veterans Affairs" (3/17/2011)
Sunshine Week at the Department of Veterans Affairs
March 17, 2011 - Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric K. Shinseki highlights the role of VAi2 as the Department’s flagship Open Government initiative.
Federal News Radio: "VA Competition Brings Health Care Innovation" (2/9/2011)
VA Competition Brings Health Care Innovation
February 9, 2011 - In an interview on Federal News Radio, VAi2 Director Jonah Czerwinski described the first four winners of the 2010 Industry Innovation Competition and outlined VAi2’s approach to innovation.
New Online Tools for Veteran Job-Seekers (12/7/2011)
New Online Tools for Veteran Job-Seekers
December 7, 2011 - Veterans now have on-demand access and can download official data about their military training and experience through Blue Button, which can be used to help them find jobs and continue their careers.
VA Announces "Badges for Vets" Contest (11/21/2011)
VA Announces “Badges for Vets” Contest
November 21, 2011 - The Department of Veterans Affairs today announced the Badges for Vets contest for creating digital “badge” systems to help Veterans translate their military skills into civilian jobs.
VA Announces Industry Innovation Competition Winners (11/4/2011)
VA Announces Industry Innovation Competition Winners
November 4, 2011 - The Department of Veterans Affairs today announced 13 new awards in the agency’s 2010 Industry Innovation Competition. The new projects will give VA an opportunity to evaluate new ways to enhance care and benefits for Veterans.
VA Announces Winner of "Blue Button for All Americans" Contest (10/25/2011)
VA Announces Winner of “Blue Button for All Americans” Contest
October 25, 2011 - RelayHealth, McKesson’s connectivity business, has been named the winner of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) “Blue Button for All Americans” contest. RelayHealth won the $50,000 contest prize by making a Blue Button personal health record (PHR) system available to all patients, including Veterans, of more than 25,000 physicians across America. VA’s Innovation Initiative (VAi2) sponsored the contest.
VA Announces Winners of 2011 VBA Employee Innovation Competition (10/18/2011)
VA Announces Winners of 2011 VBA Employee Innovation Competition
October 18, 2011 - The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) today announced six winners of the 2011 VA Innovation Initiative (VAi2) Employee Innovation Competition. The competition sought ideas from employees to help Veterans with disabilities related to their military service obtain meaningful employment. VA will develop, test, and potentially implement winning ideas for nationwide use in VA’s Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment (VR&E) Program.
VA Launches Open Source Custodian (8/30/2011)
VA Launches Open Source Custodian
August 30, 2011 - The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) today announced it has completed an important milestone on its joint path with the Department of Defense (DoD) to create a single electronic health record system for servicemembers and Veterans. OSEHRA, the Open Source Electronic Health Record Agent, has begun operations and will serve as the central governing body of a new open source Electronic Health Record (EHR) community.
VA Names Finalists for 2011 VBA Employee Innovation Competition (8/12/2011)
VA Names Finalists for 2011 VBA Employee Innovation Competition
August 12, 2011 - Twelve finalists have been selected for the latest Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Innovation Initiative (VAi2) competition, which sought new ideas to help service-disabled Veterans obtain meaningful employment. VA employees submitted more than 700 proposals to the competition.
VA Announces Blue Button Prize Competition (7/19/2011)
VA Announces Blue Button Prize Competition
July 19, 2011 - The Department of Veterans Affairs announced today it is offering a $50,000 prize to the first team that builds a personal health record (PHR) using the Blue Button download format and arranges to install the PHR on the websites of 25,000 physicians across America. Sponsored by the VA Innovation Initiative (VAi2), the Blue Button Prize Competition is open to all U.S. organizations and individuals. The contest starts on July 18.
VA Names New Industry Innovation Competition Winners (5/6/2011)
VA Names New Industry Innovation Competition Winners
May 6, 2011 - Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric K. Shinseki announced today the second round of awards from the agency’s 2010 Industry Innovation Competition to six commercial and non-profit organizations. Five projects will provide new tools for Veteran entrepreneurs, reduce the risk of adverse drug reactions, and streamline clinical coordination in VA hospitals.
West Wireless Awards $10K Developers Challenge in Conjunction with VAi2 (4/12/2011)
West Wireless Health Institute Awards $10K Developers Challenge in Conjunction with VAi2
April 12, 2011 - The West Wireless Health Institute today announced the winner of its $10,000 developers challenge, Dr. Steven Palmer, who created the “Veterans Melanoma Early Warning System” (VMEWS@Home).
VA Announces 2011 Industry Innovation Competition (2/15/2011)
VA Announces 2011 Industry Innovation Competition
February 15, 2011 - The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) today announced the opening of the 2011 Industry Innovation Competition to identify, fund and evaluate promising innovative technology proposals to improve the quality of health care for Veterans. “VA has a long history of being an innovator and early adopter of health technology,” said Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric K. Shinseki. “This competition continues that legacy and provides VA with a powerful tool to utilize the best and brightest within the industry to improve care and services for our Nation’s Veterans, their families and survivors.”
VA Announces Award of First Industry Innovation Competition Projects (2/4/2011)
VA Announces Award of First Industry Innovation Competition Projects
February 4, 2011 - Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric K. Shinseki officially announced today the first VA Innovation Initiative (VAi2) awards under the agency’s Industry Innovation Competition, its third competition since it began in early 2010. These four projects will use innovative new technologies in VA facilities to improve the quality of patient care for Veterans. They represent the first of nearly two-dozen more awards to be made in the coming months.
VAntagePoint: "VA Innovation Initiative Makes First Industry Awards" (12/20/2010)
VA Innovation Initiative Makes First Industry Awards
December 20, 2010 - VAi2 Director Jonah Czerwinski discusses two new technologies being tested in hopes of improving treatments for Veterans with heart problems or traumatic brain injury. These projects are the first to be awarded under the 2010 Industry Innovation Competition.
White House Blog: "Helping Our Vets Start Their Own Businesses" (11/17/2010)
Vetrepreneurs: Helping Our Vets Start Their Own Businesses
November 17, 2010 - VAi2 Director Jonah Czerwinski highlights services for Veteran entrepreneurs across the federal government. A key component of these services will be the “Integrated Business Accelerator” that winners of the 2010 Industry Innovation Competition will develop.
Government Health IT: "With Innovation, the Concept Is the Easy Part" (11/15/2010)
With Innovation, the Concept Is the Easy Part
November 15, 2010 - Government Health IT guest columnist Edward Meagher comments on VAi2 and innovation in large organizations.
VAi2 Hosts 2011 Planning Roundtable (11/2/2010)
VAi2 Hosts 2011 Planning Roundtable
November 2, 2010 - At the 2011 Planning Roundtable, stakeholders in VAi2 identified more than twenty focus areas that represent key challenges for VA. In the coming weeks, VAi2 will work with its stakeholders to further refine these focus areas into five to ten topics of interest for the 2011 Industry Innovation Competition.
VAi2 Featured at West Wireless HCI-DC 2010 (10/12/2010)
VAi2 Featured at HCI-DC 2010
October 12, 2010 - The West Wireless Health Institute welcomed policymakers, health care industry leaders, innovators and U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs officials to its inaugural Health Care Innovation Day (HCI-DC)
NextGov: "VA Seeks to Turn Employee-Generated Ideas into Reality" (7/2/2010)
VA Seeks to Turn Employee-Generated Ideas into Reality
July 2, 2010 - The Veterans Affairs Department wants to turn ideas its employees generated under an innovation contest into reality. Since late May, the department has released 17 proposals to develop some of the winning ideas in its health information technology competition, which drew ideas from more than 6,500 employees of the Veterans Health Administration.
President Encourages Participation in Industry Innovation Competition (8/2/2010)
President Encourages Participation in Industry Innovation Competition
August 2, 2010 - In his remarks at the Disabled American Veterans convention in Atlanta, Georgia, President Obama called on entrepreneurs and academics to submit their innovative ideas in the VAi2 Industry Innovation Competition. He also recognized the more than 10,000 suggestions received from VA employees in the VBA and VHA/OIT Innovation Competitions.
VA Launches Development of New Online Claims System (7/2/2010)
VA Launches Development of New Online Claims System
July 2, 2010 - Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric K. Shinseki announced today plans to develop a fully automated, online system for handling Veterans’ disability compensation claims. More than a simple digitization of existing paper-based claims, the new system is part of VA’s modernization of the end-to-end processing workflow. Automation will substantially reduce processing time and increase accuracy while simplifying the way that Veterans interact with the claims process.
Murray Applauds Announcement of Industry Competition to Improve Veterans Care (6/8/2010)
Murray Applauds Announcement of Industry Competition to Improve Veterans Care, Encourages Washington State Businesses to Participate
June 8, 2010 - Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), a senior member of the Veterans’ Affairs Committee, applauded the opening of the Industry Innovation Competition by the Department of Veterans Affairs, the most recent effort under the VA Innovation Initiative.
VA Announces Industry Innovation Competition (6/7/2010)
VA Announces Industry Innovation Competition
June 7, 2010 - Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric K. Shinseki announced today the opening of the Industry Innovation Competition by the Department of Veterans Affairs, the most recent effort under the VA Innovation Initiative. With this competition, VA seeks the best ideas from the private sector to address the department’s most important challenges.
VA Announces Winners of Health Information Technology Initiative (5/28/2010)
VA Announces Winners of Health Information Technology Initiative
May 28, 2010 - Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric K. Shinseki announced today the selection of 26 winning ideas in the Veterans Health Administration / Office of Information and Technology (VHA/OIT) Innovation Competition.
Shinseki Announces Winners of Innovation Competition for Claims Processing (2/19/2010)
Shinseki Announces Winners of Innovation Competition for Improving Claims Processing
February 19, 2010 - The Department of Veterans Affairs selected 10 winners in a competition that solicited ideas from VA employees and co-located Veterans service organizations to improve claims processing and provide greater transparency to Veterans.
"Innovation Initiative" Underway for Health Records Improvements (2/18/2010)
“Innovation Initiative” Underway for Health Records Improvements
February 18, 2010 - Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric K. Shinseki launched the “Veterans Health IT Innovation Initiative,” an employee-based Health Information Technology (HIT) competition to spur VA’s transformation into a 21st Century organization that is Veteran-centric, results-oriented, and forward-looking.
Craigslist Founder Joins VA Innovation Search Panel (11/4/2009)
Craigslist Founder Joins VA Innovation Search Panel
November 4, 2009 - Craig Newmark, the founder of “craigslist” and a well-known technology visionary, has agreed to serve on the blue-ribbon panel of the Department of Veterans Affairs that will review and evaluate ideas to improve disability claims processing times and provide greater transparency to Veterans.
"Innovation Competition" Begins at Veterans Affairs (9/10/2009)
“Innovation Competition” Begins at Veterans Affairs
September 10, 2009 - To speed its transformation into a 21st Century organization that is Veteran-centric, results-oriented and forward-looking, the Department of Veterans Affairs has launched one of the largest innovation competitions in the agency’s history. The competition solicits ideas from VA employees and co-located Veterans Service Organizations who are on the front lines of the Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA) and encourages them to submit entries addressing everything from claims processing times to better process transparency.
