IBM, Epic Unveil Advisory Group As They Vie For Big Military EHR Contract

IBM Corp. and Epic Systems Corp., likely hoping to show why their joint bid should win the Defense Department's $11 billion, 10-year EHR contract, Wednesday unveiled a 17-person group they've assembled to help advise the department and guide it through implementation if they win the work.

The team primarily includes executives from large providers who have already implemented Epic electronic health-record systems such as Kaiser Permanente, based in Oakland, Calif.; Geisinger Health System, Danville, Pa.; Mercy Health, Chesterfield, Mo.; Partners HealthCare, Boston; and Sentara Health, based in Norfolk, Va. Also included are a representative from the American Medical Informatics Association, and retired Maj. Will Lyles, a patient advocate.

At a Washington, D.C., event announcing the team's formation, representatives from the group were keen to stress the level of satisfaction Epic's system had given them, and the level of help they received from other Epic-using chief information officers. They insisted the event was not meant to be a pitch for the military business, although it would be difficult for an outsider to see it as anything but that...