Maximizing Efficiency and Improving Access to Providers at the Department of Veterans Affairs Act 2017-01-12 Introduced in Senate Maximizing Efficiency and Improving Access to Providers at the Department of Veterans Affairs Act

This bill directs the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to carry out an 18-month pilot program to increase the use of medical scribes to maximize the efficiency of physicians at VA medical facilities. A "medical scribe" is defined as a member of the medical team hired and trained to perform documentation in an electronic health record to maximize the productivity of a physician.

The program shall be conducted at not fewer than five medical facilities that: (1) have a high volume of patients; or (2) are in rural areas where there is a shortage of physicians and where each physician has a high caseload.

To carry out such program, the VA shall enter into a contract with one or more nongovernmental entities that train and employ professional medical scribes who specialize in the collection of medical data and data entry into electronic health records.

The VA shall collect data to determine the effectiveness of the program, including information on changes in the average wait times for veterans to receive care, the average number of patients that a physician is able to see, the average amount of time such a physician spends on documentation, physician satisfaction and retention scores, and patient satisfaction scores.

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