Defense Health Agency Selects Amwell and Leidos to Power Digital First Initiative

Faced with escalating costs, the US Defense Health Agency (DHA) is seeking a digital solution to the problem of managing chronic health conditions – and has turned to telehealth specialist Amwell and defense contractor Leidos to provide it.

The DHA is a joint, integrated Combat Support Agency (CSA) that enables the military medical markets: U.S. Army Medical Command (MEDCOM), Navy Bureau of Medicine and Surgery (BUMED), and U.S. Air Force Medical Service (AFMS) to provide a ready medical force and medically ready force to Combatant Commands (CCMDs) in both peacetime and wartime.

DHA oversees the execution of the $46.6 billion DHP budgetary resources to support the delivery of integrated, affordable, high-quality health services to the DoD’s 9.6 million eligible beneficiaries. DHA drives greater integration of clinical and business processes across the contracted healthcare networks and Military Treatment Facilities.

The 22-month contract, worth up to $180 million, will see the Amwell Converge digital health platform delivered to Military Health System (MHS) members by the Leidos Partnership for Defense Health (LPDH), a partnership that provides the GENESIS electronic health record (EHR) system to the military.

Military personnel and their families often lack physical access to medical facilities, either because of where they are stationed or because they are deployed on active duty, and digital channels provide a way to overcome that problem.

Amwell Converge provides digital, virtual, and automated services and will replace the MHS’ Video Connect system, a web-based telehealth platform that was developed in partnership with the LPDH and launched during the pandemic. It will initially be deployed at five sites, with the intention to be rolled out across the MHS enterprise.

Like other health systems in the US, the MHS is projecting increased exposure to costly chronic conditions such as diabetes, coupled with a shortage of clinicians and caregivers, and sees digital technologies as a way to respond to the challenge.

In the case of the military, of course, those issues have another dimension, potentially affecting the readiness of personnel to respond to threats, and the MHS has said it is seeking to develop a digital ecosystem – built on an enterprise resource planning (ERP) software platform – that can layer in technologies like telehealth and virtual care, augmented and virtual reality, and generative artificial intelligence.

Takeaway: One of DHA’s major goals is to deploy MHS GENESIS, the new electronic health record, to military hospitals and clinics

AMI’s recently published Defense/Veterans Affairs 2023-2024 Overview provides comprehensive business intelligence on both organizations and on the procurement departments and key executives to help sell successfully to the largest purchasers in the federal market.