Two years later, DOD and VA are still far off on merging digital medical records

WASHINGTON — Two years ago, leaders from the Defense Department and Veterans Affairs promised to redouble efforts to make seamless, lifetime medical records a reality for troops enlisting in the military.

 

Remains of 30 U.S. troops killed in helo crash arrive in Dover

The remains of 30 U.S. troops killed when their helicopter crashed in Afghanistan have arrived in the United States, according to the Associated Press.

 

Afghan forces show little progress as security handoff nears

GARMSIR DISTRICT, Afghanistan — An Afghan soldier lay in the mud, more unwilling than unable to extract himself. Like about half the Marines with him, he’d fallen in the shin-deep sludge moments after striking out from Patrol Base Amir near the middle of Helmand’s Garmsir district.

 

Military Faces Challenge In Rebuilding SEAL Team 6

The Taliban attack that claimed the lives of nearly two dozen members of the elite and secretive unit called SEAL Team 6 places a huge burden on the Special Forces community.

 

Pentagon to Reconsider Landing Chinooks in Battle Zones

KABUL, Afghanistan — Two Pentagon officials told McClatchy Newspapers on Monday that an investigation into the helicopter crash that killed 30 American troops would probe whether it’s a mistake to send the large, lumbering Chinook helicopter into a Taliban firefight, where it’s a target for insurgents.

 

Fort Bragg GI Accused of Embezzling $750K From DoD

Federal authorities have accused a Fort Bragg Soldier of embezzling nearly $750,000 from the Department of Defense.

 

Ex-VA Employee Gets Prison in Identity Theft Case

A former Veterans Affairs employee from Fayetteville has been sentenced in federal court to 11 years in prison for stealing the identities of disabled veterans and using them to commit income tax fraud, the U.S. Attorney Office announced on Monday.

 

Widely used PTSD drug fails test in combat veterans

A medication commonly used to treat post-traumatic stress disorder in combat veterans may not be effective in reducing overall PTSD severity, a new study shows.

 

Troop Retirement, Health Care May Face Cuts

BAGHDAD — Health care, retirement and benefits for the military are all potential targets for cuts as the nation struggles to rein in spending, the top U.S. military officer told anxious troops on two warfronts.

 

Guard: $34M in bonuses possibly granted improperly

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — The National Guard will allow an Oregon recruit the $20,000 bonus it promised her in 2007, even though it believes the money was among $34 million worth of incentives improperly granted in recent years.

 

Senate Confirms Dempsey to Head Joint Chiefs

WASHINGTON — The Senate voted Tuesday to approve President Obama’s nomination of Army Gen. Martin Dempsey to be the next chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

 

Iraqi leaders get OK to negotiate continued U.S. troop presence

Iraq’s political leaders gave the government the green light Tuesday to begin negotiating a deal with the U.S. to keep American troops in the country past the end of the year to train Iraqi security forces, The Associated Press reported.

 

New White House Strategy to Hit Violent Extremism

WASHINGTON — Local communities around the country are best suited to take on the challenge of combating the kind of violent extremism that inspires people to kill, the Obama administration concludes in a new national plan to fight the threat of al-Qaida and other violent radicals at home.