Who We Are
Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Privacy Service (PS) is a division within the Office of Information and Technology (OIT). The service was founded in 2002 with the mission to preserve and protect the Personally Identifiable Information (PII) of Veterans, their beneficiaries, and VA employees by promoting a culture of privacy awareness and maintaining the trust of those we serve.
VA Privacy Service administers its programs according to the Privacy Act of 1974, the Office of Management and Budget Circular A-130, the Federal Information Security Modernization Act of 2014 or FISMA, the Social Security Number Fraud Prevention Act of 2017, and other federal laws, regulations, and policies.
VA Privacy Service works closely with Privacy Offices at the Veterans Health Administration, Veterans Benefits Administration, National Cemetery Administration and VA Central Office to implement VA’s privacy policies and programs. At VA, more than 400 Privacy Officers throughout the United States help protect the Privacy of Veterans, their beneficiaries, and VA employees in all VA technologies, programs, and policies.
Leadership
Eddie Pool
Acting Assistant Secretary, Chief Information Officer, and Senior Agency Official for Privacy
Eddie Pool currently leads the daily operations of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) technology and cybersecurity programs, managing a budget of more than $7 billion. He oversees a team of approximately 16,000 federal employees and contractors, all focused on supporting the delivery of health care and benefits to over ten million enrolled Veterans.
Merissa Larson
Acting Deputy Chief Information Officer for Compliance, Risk, and Remediation and Chief Privacy Officer, Office of Information and Technology
Merissa Larson currently serves as the Acting Deputy Chief Information Officer for Compliance, Risk, and Remediation and Chief Privacy Officer within the Office of Information Technology (OIT). In her permanent role, she is the Executive Director for Risk and Remediation and Deputy Risk Officer for OIT, where she oversees several critical directorates: 508 Compliance, Compliance Readiness, IT Enterprise Governance, IT Enterprise Risk Management, Enterprise Independent Verification and Validation, Compliance Tracking, and Operational Planning and Remediation.
Rita Grewal
Acting Director, VA Privacy Service
Rita Grewal is the Acting Director, VA Privacy Service and Branch Chief, VA Privacy Risk Management and Compliance. She has 30 years of experience with VA in many roles including Chief Health Information Management, Privacy and Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Officer, Records Management Officer, and Veterans Equitable Resource Allocation (VERA) Coordinator.
