WASHINGTON — A lawsuit has been filed by Laurette Santos, a Department of Veterans Affairs employee, against the VA concerning its implementation of a new electronic health record system which she claims is not accessible to users with disabilities, particularly affecting employees and veterans who are visually impaired. The litigation, initiated last month in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, centers on the system’s failure to integrate with screen readers and other assistive technologies.
Santos, who has served as a licensed social worker at the VA for over a decade, currently works as a Visual Impairment Services Team coordinator at the VA Medical Center in White City, Oregon. The medical center is one of the six VA facilities currently using the Oracle-Cerner EHR system, which the lawsuit alleges has severe accessibility shortcomings.
The new EHR system’s incompatibility with assistive devices impedes Santos’ ability to perform her duties independently. Santos, who is legally blind, relies on a screen reading software called Job Access With Speech (JAWS) to access computer screens. This technology was compatible with the VA’s previous system, allowing her to perform essential job functions with minimal assistance.
Santos disclosed that she provides therapeutic counseling to veterans dealing with vision loss, emphasizing the difficulty and isolation that comes with blindness. Her personal experience with visual impairment deepens her understanding of the veterans’ challenges, as she herself has been unable to read text since 1988 due to retinitis pigmentosa.
Before the Oracle-Cerner platform was adopted, Santos was asked by Cerner personnel in 2019 to review its accessibility features. She reported immediate issues, stating that the platform’s codes did not recognize the presence of additional software like hers. Despite her feedback, these crucial accessibility problems remained unaddressed at launch.
Legally, the VA’s contract with Cerner required the EHR system to be compatible with accessibility-related software, a stipulation stemming from requirements outlined in Section 508, which mandates that all technology purchased and used by federal entities must be accessible. Eve Hill, a partner at the law firm Brown Goldstein & Levy representing Santos, criticized the VA for not ensuring compliance with these legal requirements. She suggests that the department negligently failed to verify the system’s compatibility before proceeding with its deployment.
According to the lawsuit, the failure to integrate accessibility features has had “disastrous consequences” for Santos’ capability to effectively do her job, forcing her to delegate tasks to sighted employees, which could jeopardize her clinical license. Moreover, Santos pointed out that the lack of accessibility also profoundly affects veterans who are visually impaired, limiting their ability to interact with the new EHR system.
Reports indicate that the VA recognized the system’s shortcomings following several audits between November 2020 and November 2021, which confirmed its inaccessibility. This revelation has led the VA to a “reset” period, pausing further deployments of the Oracle-Cerner EHR until these significant issues are addressed.
Santos expressed her dismay at the situation, lamenting that the inadequacy of the system not only impedes her work but also diminishes her ability to assist veterans in transitioning to a different way of living. She hopes for improvements in the system’s compliance with Section 508 to better support both employees and veterans relying on its functionality. The resolution of this lawsuit could prompt a critical reevaluation of how technology is implemented in federal health services, impacting future practices to ensure inclusivity and accessibility for all users.