OSEHRA

What OSEHRA does

OSEHRA (Open Source Electronic Health Record Alliance) was a non-profit organization established by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs around 2011 to serve as the cornerstone of open-source software efforts in the health information technology community. Headquartered in Vienna, Virginia, OSEHRA operated as a vendor-neutral community platform that convened government agencies, healthcare providers, software developers, researchers, and industry experts to advance EHR software and related health IT. The organization had an estimated 11–50 employees and an open, community-led go-to-market model with no commercial sales motion.

The organization's two core products were OSEHRA VistA, an open-source Electronic Health Record system that maintained compatibility with the VA's VistA EHR while integrating community enhancements, and popHealth, an open-source quality measure reference implementation for meaningful use quality measure reporting. The technical architecture was modular and scalable, encompassing EHR functionality, data storage and exchange, clinical decision support, security, and user interfaces, built on open standards to ensure interoperability and extensibility. Outreach and engagement were driven through community conferences, working groups, forums, and mailing lists.

As a non-profit government initiative, OSEHRA did not generate commercial revenue. Software was distributed freely via self-serve download, eliminating licensing fees in favor of community-driven adoption. The organization was funded by government support rather than commercial streams, with the VA serving as primary sponsor and largest user. The two named anchor customers were the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and the Indian Health Service. OSEHRA shut down in February 2020 after the VA and Department of Defense decided to replace the VistA platform, with most assets — including web content, training materials, and journal content — transferred to WorldVistA, which continues the open-source VistA mission.

Name

OSEHRA

Legal name

Open Source Electronic Health Record Alliance

Website

https://osehra.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2011

Operating status

Closed

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

OSEHRA was a US Department of Veterans Affairs-founded non-profit (2011–2020) that operated a vendor-neutral open-source community advancing EHR software, with two core products: OSEHRA VistA (open-source EHR) and popHealth (quality measure reporting). The organization shut down in February 2020, with assets transferred to WorldVistA.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Vienna

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Open Source Distribution (Non-Profit): OSEHRA was a non-profit organization established by the US Department of Veterans Affairs. As an open source initiative, it distributed software freely without licensing fees. Revenue was not generated through software sales but rather through fostering an ecosystem of complementary products, capabilities, and services. The organization was funded by government support rather than commercial revenue streams.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

OSEHRA was a non-profit open-source community organization that developed and maintained open-source health IT software, principally OSEHRA VistA (an open-source EHR system compatible with the VA's VistA) and popHealth (an open-source quality measure reference implementation for meaningful use reporting). Healthcare organizations could freely download, customize, and implement the software; the organization was funded by the US Department of Veterans Affairs rather than through software licensing fees.

Product overview

OSEHRA (Open Source Electronic Health Record Alliance) was a vendor-neutral community platform established by the US Department of Veterans Affairs focused on advancing open-source EHR software and health information technology. The organization developed two core products: OSEHRA VistA, an open-source community-supported EHR system compatible with the VA's VistA system, and popHealth, an open-source quality measure reference implementation for meaningful use reporting. The organization fostered collaboration among developers, healthcare providers, and industry experts through conferences, working groups, and collaborative platforms. OSEHRA shut down in February 2020, with most assets transferred to WorldVistA.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• OSEHRA VistA OSEHRA VistA is an open-source Electronic Health Record (EHR) system that is community-supported, customizable, and can be implemented by developers or healthcare providers. It maintains compatibility with the VistA EHR system developed by the US Department of Veterans Affairs while integrating enhancements from the wider open-source community, and is intended for hospitals, clinics, and healthcare organizations seeking customizable EHR solutions.
• popHealth popHealth is an open-source quality measure reference implementation that aids healthcare providers in meaningful use quality measure reporting and supports easier submission of quality measures to public health organizations.

Quantifiable outcome

• OSEHRA VistA improved patient care, increased efficiency, and reduced healthcare costs within the VA healthcare system.
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered flagship and core.

• WorldVistAflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2011Following OSEHRA's shutdown in February 2020, most of its assets including web content, training materials, and journal content were transferred to WorldVistA. WorldVistA was founded to extend and collaboratively improve the VistA EHR and health information system for use outside its original VA setting, continuing the mission of improving healthcare worldwide.
• U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2011Established OSEHRA around 2011 as the cornerstone of open-source software efforts in the health IT community. The VA was the primary sponsor and largest user of VistA, the core technology underlying OSEHRA's open source ecosystem.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights2 records

Direct peers

• OpenMRS: Open-source electronic medical record platform built and maintained by a global community of volunteers, closely comparable to OSEHRA VistA in its open-source model, customization approach, and target users in resource-constrained healthcare settings.
• GNU Health: Free/open-source health and hospital information system distributed via a community model, comparable to OSEHRA in its non-profit, open-source approach to delivering EHR and health IT functionality to governments and NGOs.
• Mirth Corporation (NextGen Healthcare): Open-source healthcare integration engine (Mirth Connect) that, like OSEHRA, was a community-supported open-source health IT tool; now part of NextGen Healthcare but historically a direct peer in the open-source health IT ecosystem.
• WorldVistA: Non-profit that received OSEHRA's assets (web content, training materials, journal content) after the February 2020 shutdown and continues the open-source VistA mission, making it the closest operating successor to OSEHRA.

Broad incumbents

• HL7 International: Established standards body developing healthcare interoperability standards (including FHIR); OSEHRA's open-source EHR work contributed to and depended on HL7 standards, making HL7 a broad-incumbent peer in the health IT ecosystem OSEHRA served.
• Oracle Health (formerly Cerner): Major proprietary EHR vendor whose federal-side deployments (including the VA's replacement of VistA) directly contributed to OSEHRA's loss of anchor sponsorship, making it a key incumbent peer in the same EHR market.
• MEDITECH: Established commercial EHR vendor serving hospitals and health systems, comparable to OSEHRA as a provider of EHR platforms targeting healthcare organizations, but operating on a proprietary, licensed model.
• Epic Systems: Largest proprietary EHR vendor in the U.S. market, including at the VA following the Cerner replacement. Epic represents the commercial, proprietary alternative to OSEHRA's open-source VistA approach.

Emerging players

• openEHR Foundation: Non-profit foundation promoting open specifications for electronic health records, sharing OSEHRA's commitment to interoperability, open standards, and vendor-neutral health data models.

Others

• Regenstrief Institute: Health informatics research organization that supports open health data standards (e.g., LOINC) and open-source health IT initiatives, thematically aligned with OSEHRA's open-standards and open-source community approach.

Market position

Strengths2 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/OSEHRA

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about OSEHRA