National & World Headlines

  • The heads of DoD and VA met on Thursday, and decided they wanted to a plan to speed up the delivery of an integrated health record system, currently scheduled for implementation in 2017.

    December 07, 2012
  • Just two years ago, Arlington National Cemetery was plagued by mismarked and unidentified gravesites and incomplete paper records. Now, the Army has at its disposal a massive, GPS-enabled digital database of every gravesite. And what's more — the cemetery has made the database available to the public via its website and a mobile application.

    December 06, 2012
  • On this week's Capital Impact show, analysts discuss the fiscal cliff and its impact, and how a new court ruling will affect traditional utilites and power companies. December 6, 2012

    December 06, 2012
  • The Veterans Affairs Department's mobile projects have centered on improving internal business processes and changing how the agency interacts with the public. The department's "Clinic-in-Hand" program, which will launch early next year, will deploy iPads to family caregivers of Iraq and Afghanistan veterans. And increasingly VA doctors and nurses are eschewing the clipboards and prescription pads in favor of mobile options.

    December 06, 2012
  • Jeh Johnson, the Pentagon's top lawyer has resigned and says he will return to private practice. Johnson is leaving at the end of December after four years that included a number of controversial legal issues including the escalation in the use of drone strikes and the repeal of the Pentagon's ban on openly gay military service. He left the New York City- based law firm of Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison, LLP, to take the Pentagon job, and is expected to return there.

    December 06, 2012
  • Kathleen Frisbee talks about mobile efforts at the Veterans Health Administration. Richard Buangan of the State Department talks about an agency Twitter account that tweets off-message. Ticora Jones discusses new development labs built with seed money from USAID.

    December 06, 2012
  • Mark Goodge, the chief technology officer of the Military Health System, said the agency is putting the right frameworks and policies in place to enable a more robust computing environment where patients and health care providers can take advantage of smartphones and tablets. With 9.6 million people under its care, Goodge said MHS's number one priority is security.

    December 06, 2012
  • The Army's Contracting Command will inactivate its National Capital Region contracting center in July of 2013, one of six it currently operates around the country. The move is partially intended to let the command decrease its turnover rate for acquisition talent.

    December 05, 2012
  • The Senate approved a $631 billion annual defense policy Tuesday that would require the Defense Department to reduce its civilian workforce by 5 percent over the next five years and impose a strict cap on government-funded contractor salaries. With the White House threatening to veto the Senate version its current form, the bill now heads to a House-Senate conference committee where differences between the two chambers' bill will be hammered out.

    December 05, 2012
  • The Senate has voted for a broad $631 billion defense bill, that among other things, calls for accelerating the withdrawal of U.S. forces from Afghanistan and tightens sanctions on Iran. The legislation which passed 98-0, would authorize money for weapons, aircraft and ships and provide a 1.7 percent pay raise for military personnel.

    December 05, 2012
  • Witold Skwierczynski of the AFGE National Council of Social Security Administration Field Operations Locals talks about today's SSA demonstration. Travis Howerton discusses the National Nuclear Security Administration's plans to launch its own social network. Jeremy Herb of The Hill details the Defense Bill just passed by the Senate.

    December 05, 2012
  • Missing in Vietnam since 1971, Army Sgt. John R. Jones, of Louisville, Ky., is coming home. His remains will be buried Dec. 6, in Arlington National Cemetery. On June 4, 1971, Jones was part of a U.S. team working with indigenous commandos to defend a radio-relay base, known as Hickory Hill, in Quang Tri Province, South Vietnam. When enemy forces attacked the site, Jones and another serviceman took up a defensive position in a nearby bunker. The following morning, Jones was killed by enemy fire.

    December 04, 2012
  • The GI Bill is now a registered trademark with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. The Department of Veterans Affairs announced it is now the sole owner of the phrase.

    December 04, 2012
  • USPS' Tony Vegliante talks about veterans working at the Postal Service. Attorney Joseph Petrillo discusses the government's many procurement rules. Jerry Brito of George Mason University launched a site to encourage greater transparency at the World Conference on International Telecommunications. Bob Litan discusses a new Bloomberg Government report on reducing the deficit. DoD's Stephen King talks about the Pentagon honoring standout workers with disabilities.

    December 04, 2012