The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has awarded a 12-year $725 million contract to AT&T to modernize the agency’s IP-based data communication platform and drive mission outcomes.
The deal was awarded under the General Services Administration’s (GSA) Enterprise Infrastructure Solutions (EIS) contract for Federal agencies. The VA will work with AT&T to modernize its data network “to exceed its goals of a highly secure, scalable, highly available, and resilient technology infrastructure that can enable rapid cloud adoption,” according to a release.
Some of the modernization efforts include wide area networking, virtual private networking, and managed network services. The wide area networking capabilities will allow VA care providers to access a veteran’s health records digitally in real-time, replacing the need for paper and fax-based record sharing while also delivering faster care.
“VA is continuing to explore and innovate with advancing technologies to help us provide exceptional customer service to our nation’s veterans,” said Daniel Mesimer, director of WAN/LAN Infrastructure Engineering and Provisioning Solution Delivery in VA’s Office of Information and Technology, IT Operations and Services.
The $725 million contract will help VA operate the nation’s largest integrated health care system with a high-speed data network. According to the release, this contract will “serve as a foundation for innovative VA technology capabilities to drive mission outcomes.”
“It is a special honor to win the opportunity to help VA modernize its mission in the service of our many heroes,” Chris Smith, vice president for civilian and shared services at AT&T Public Sector and FirstNet, said. “We’re thrilled to complement our broad array of AT&T programs that benefit veterans with an advanced data communications platform and capabilities that will power VA’s mission for years to come.”
