OUR STORY
How the Community came to be
The Veteran Interoperability Pledge (VIP) launched in October 2023 as a voluntary commitment among health systems, EHR vendors, and federal partners to advance care coordination for Veterans. As the Pledge's goals took shape, a need emerged for sustained, collaborative work on the real-world challenges of identifying Veterans in community care, connecting them to VA benefits, and coordinating care across systems. The VIP Community of Practice was convened to do that work, a vendor-agnostic forum where member organizations turn shared commitments into shared practice.
WHO WE ARE
About the VIP Community of Practice
The VIP Community of Practice brings health systems, EHR vendors, payers, and federal partners together in a national, vendor-agnostic forum, working to close the health data interoperability gaps that follow Veterans into community care so they are accurately identified, connected to VA benefits, and able to receive continuous, coordinated care wherever they seek treatment.
HOW THE COMMUNITY CREATES VALUE
Value that moves member to member
Most of the Community's value flows directly between members.
Health systems, EHR vendors, payers, and federal partners compare workflows, share what works, and document lessons learned so no organization solves the same problem alone. That exchange lives in two places: the monthly plenary and focused working sessions, where members surface challenges and solutions in real time, and the knowledge repository, a growing library of best practices, workflow documentation, and shared terminology that members draw on in their own settings.
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When the Community reaches consensus that a challenge needs VA action, it develops a formal recommendation. Recommendations are the Community's most selective output: fewer, deliberate, grounded in members' real-world experience, and delivered to VA Leadership for consideration.
HOW WE'RE GOVERNED
One program, distinct roles
The Veteran Interoperability Pledge and the Community that advances it work through three distinct roles.
VA governs the Pledge
The Veteran Interoperability Pledge is a VA commitment to Veterans. VA stewards the Pledge, defines the goals signatories commit to, and connects that work to VA's care coordination priorities.
The Convener facilitates
The neutral Convener team coordinates the plenary and focused working sessions, maintains the collaboration site, curates the knowledge repository, and supports members.
The Community does the work
The Community is the vendor-agnostic forum where member organizations share practices and develop recommendations. Members decide what the Community works on.
Call to Action from VHA leadership
FEB 2023
National Roundtable with health system leaders
JUL 2023
Veteran Interoperability Pledge launched
OCT 2023
Community of Practice convened to advance Pledge goals
OCT 2025
WHO IS IN THE ROOM
A cross-sector community built for this work
Health systems and integrated delivery networks
EHR vendors and health IT developers
Academic medical centers and research institutions
Health payers and managed care organizations
Federal and state Veterans Affairs agencies
Standards bodies and interoperability partners
WHO FACILITATES
The Convener team
A neutral team operating under VA's Digital Health Office, the Convener facilitates the Community's work: supporting members, coordinating sessions, and making sure the Community's recommendations reach the right decision-makers.
Jennifer Rosas
Program Manager
Jen Rosas serves as Program Manager for the VIP Community of Practice, supporting coordination between the VA Digital Health Office and the Community. She brings more than 30 years of experience in health information technology, with deep roots in both the Department of Defense Military Health System and Veteran-focused interoperability.
Charles Foster
Project Manager
Chuck Foster, a 23-year Navy Veteran, serves as Project Manager for the VIP Community of Practice. He leads day-to-day operations for the Convener team and facilitates the Community's monthly plenary and working sessions. Chuck brings more than three decades of health IT leadership across the Department of Defense, the VA, and the commercial health sector.
Jason Simmons
Health Systems Specialist
Jason Simmons serves as Health System Specialist for the VIP Community of Practice, supporting the Convener team's standards tracking, impact analysis, and program analytics. He brings more than 20 years of clinical informatics and healthcare operations experience across the Veterans Health Administration and the U.S. Army Medical Command, including service as Chief Medical Information Officer for Brooke Army Medical Center.
Gay Stahr
Informatics Specialist
Gay Stahr serves as Informatics Specialist for the VIP Community of Practice, leading the Convener team's technical and operational infrastructure. She brings over 15 years of experience working across healthcare, research, and federal teams to design and operationalize governance structures, platforms, and documentation for complex, mission-critical programs.