The Department of Defense achieved a major milestone today, when it launched AHLTA, its global electronic health record system.

Dr. William Winkenwerder, assistant secretary of defense for health affairs, launched the system at the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Md. Michael O. Leavitt, secretary of health and human services, attended the event.

AHLTA is the largest, most significant electronic health record system of its kind. It has the potential to serve more than 9 million servicemembers, retirees and their families worldwide. When fully implemented, about 60,000 military healthcare professionals -- at stateside defense medical facilities and 11 other countries -- will use this electronic health record system.

"Beneficiaries' health records will be available around the clock and around the world. Available to healthcare providers, yet protected from loss and unauthorized access," Secretary Winkenwerder said. "Our electronic health record has matured to a point that its size and complexity are unrivaled.

“Most importantly, this new system was built in partnership with America's leading information technology companies," he said.

Today, thousands of military medical providers use the system. Nearly 300,000 outpatient visits are captured digitally every week.

Full deployment of the system in DOD's 800 clinics and 70 hospitals will be complete by December 2006.

"With the roll-out of AHLTA, the Department of Defense has made a great step toward achieving President Bush's goal of making electronic health records available to a majority of Americans within 10 years," Secretary Leavitt said. "The lessons we learn from an initiative of this geographic scope and patient base will prove invaluable for future private and government health systems."

The longer-term vision -- expected to be achieved in the next two to three years -- is a continuously updated digital medical record from the point of injury or care on the battlefield to military clinics and hospitals in the United States, officials said. Records are all completely transferable electronically to the Veterans Health Administration.

A massive training program for AHLTA is underway in DOD's medical community to ensure all who have access to the system are properly trained how to use it and on health record security.