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October 24, 2026

Takeaways from the most recent news in the technology and policies shaping healthcare.

Government

VA Brings Oracle EHR to Four Ohio, Kentucky Medical Centers

By Healthcare Technology News ·

The Department of Veterans Affairs has deployed Oracle Health's electronic health record system at four medical centers in Ohio and Kentucky, according to Healthcare Dive. The move marks the second wave of go-lives in 2026 as the agency tries to revive a modernization effort it had largely paused for years.

The VA halted broad deployments after the Oracle system, first rolled out in 2020, was tied to technical failures, outages, and patient-safety errors at early sites. The agency spent much of the intervening period fixing those problems before resuming the schedule. The new go-lives suggest the VA believes the platform is now stable enough to expand.

The stakes are large. The contract is one of the federal government's biggest health IT projects, aimed at replacing the VA's decades-old VistA system and creating a single record shared with the Department of Defense. How smoothly these sites perform will shape whether the VA accelerates or again slows the troubled rollout.

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Government

FDA Approves First Once-Weekly Insulin for Children

The FDA approved Novo Nordisk's Awiqli, the first once-weekly basal insulin for children 10 and older with Type 2 diabetes.

Why it matters: Weekly rather than daily insulin could improve adherence for a growing number of children with Type 2 diabetes.

Government

Feds Launch False Claims Act Self-Disclosure Pilot

HHS and the DOJ Civil Division have launched a six-month pilot letting healthcare companies self-report potential civil False Claims Act violations and settle through a coordinated civil release.

Why it matters: The pilot reshapes how hospitals and healthcare firms weigh self-reporting against federal fraud enforcement, with real consequences for compliance strategy.

Government

GOP Pushes Fraud Message to Deflect Healthcare Cost Anger

Republicans are elevating healthcare fraud as a midterm message to deflect voter anger over costs, while Democrats say the push targets blue states to justify Medicaid and ACA cuts.

Why it matters: Fraud-focused enforcement could reshape Medicaid and ACA funding, audits, and eligibility for the tens of millions who depend on those programs.