House Votes Faster Firings at VA, Speedier Claim Appeals
Military Update: The House voted 310-116 Wednesday to arm the Department of Veterans Affairs, exclusively among federal departments, with tougher employee “accountability” tools to punish...
View ArticleReadiness Worries Deepened by Hill Ineptitude on Budgets
It’s a wasteful misstep caused again by bitter partisanship, weak leaders and alarming apathy over the harm being done to military readiness, say senators on the armed services committee.
View ArticleVA Chief Sees Congress Letting Politics Slow Veteran Reforms
Military Update: “I was confirmed 97-to-0,” says VA Secretary Bob McDonald, recalling the Senate vote in July 2014 on his nomination to lead 360,000 VA...
View ArticleMiller V. McDonald: Clash of Agendas and Legacies for Vets
Military Update: Republican Rep. Jeff Miller, the soon-to-retire chairman of the House Veterans Affairs Committee, is a former deputy sheriff of Gilchrist County, Fla., who...
View ArticleNew Military E-Health Record System to Begin at Fairchild
Congressional overseers of the long-awaited e-health record system aren’t upset by the missed December start at Fairchild, or by a rescheduling of e-health record launches at three larger base...
View ArticleMore Arrests Made in TRICARE Rx Kickback Scheme
Military Update – TRICARE Rx Chief: Compound Drug Screen Works; More Arrests Made Federal agents last Friday charged 10 more defendants with fraud and conspiracy...
View ArticleFamilies, Providers Await Hill Vote on TRICARE Autism Fees
Military Update: Kelly Bridgeforth and her husband Kevin, both Air Force retirees, are waiting anxiously for Congress to reconvene after Election Day and finish work...
View ArticleSweetheart Deal Seen Driving Product Mix in Commissaries
After completing a $1.5 million study of commissaries in 2015, Boston Consulting Group (BCG) landed several no-bid contracts from Defense Commissary Agency (DeCA) to implement the study’s vision of...
View ArticleTrump’s VA Chief to Decide on New Agent Orange Ailments
Military Update: Bob McDonald won’t be the VA secretary to decide if thousands more Vietnam War veterans – those with bladder cancer, high blood pressure,...
View ArticleCommissary Suppliers Irate Over New DeCA Price Demands
Military Update: Product buyers for the Defense Commissary Agency (DeCA) are becoming very unpopular with many grocery suppliers. The buyers are confronting them with canned...
View ArticleDeCA: We’ll Add Private Labels But Sustain Brand Savings
Military Update: Commissary shoppers will see no drop in savings on brand name items even as the Defense Commissary Agency begins to offer better prices...
View ArticleCongress Pushes Larger Pay Raise, Rejects Further Compensation Cuts
Military Update: Conferees Reject More Pruning of Military Compensation House armed services committee conferees, in negotiating a final fiscal 2017 defense authorization bill, succeeded in...
View ArticleEasing Stress of ‘Death TV’ for Remotely Located Warriors
Military Update: Thousands of Air Force personnel in units called Distributed Common Ground Systems (DCGS) daily gather video and audio intelligence on Islamic State fighters...
View ArticleAverage Rise in Stateside Housing Allowances is 2.4 Percent for 2017
Military Update: Basic Allowance for Housing (BAH) paid to a million service members living off base in the United States will climb an average of...
View ArticleCosts Kill Big Gains for Vets but Reserve Retirees Win ‘Vet’ Status
Military Update: For a while it seemed 2016 would be the year Congress phased in a $3 billion plan to give older generations of severely...
View ArticlePoint-of-Service Controls Keeping Rx Savings on Track
Military Update: The Department of Defense pharmacy program is on to track to slice $1.3 billion off projected drug costs from 2014 to 2019, thanks...
View ArticleAvalanche of Enacted TRICARE Changes Poses Challenges
Military Update: The National Defense Authorization Act (S 2943) signed into law Dec. 23 orders an avalanche of changes to the TRICARE healthcare benefit used...
View ArticleMillions More Vets to Be Able to Shop at Exchanges Online
Military Update: After two years of study and debate, the Department of Defense has made a policy change, effective next November, to allow 16 million...
View ArticleBehind the Hill’s Swift Reforms of Military Compensation
Military Update: Over decades Congress has considered numerous studies on reforming different aspects of military compensation, from retirement and basic pay tables to healthcare benefits...
View ArticleSuze Orman Has Some Thoughts on New Blended Retirement Plan
Military Update: Personal finance expert Suze Orman knows military leaders, pay officials and retirement service offices are getting ready to educate service members on the...
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