In the efforts to create a national system of electronic health records, regional extension centers, which will assist healthcare providers in making the digital switch, are the connective tissue, holding everything else together. Last week, the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology unveiled five new initiatives to boost the centers’ efforts to [...]

Some have characterized cybersecurity as a challenge for the private marketplace, and others have laid it squarely on the shoulders of the military, calling the efforts to secure cyberspace the latest battle frontier. But, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano is having none of it. Speaking at a cybersecurity conference sponsored by Atlantic Media [...]

Secretary of Energy Steven Chu announced late last week a two-year pay freeze for the more than 75,000 contractors who work for the Department of Energy. The move follows President Barack Obama’s proposed two-year pay freeze for federal civilian workers. Chu said it’s now time for contractors to begin making a sacrifice as well. “As [...]

The President’s Council of Advisors for Science and Technology is calling for the government to ramp up spending on IT research and development to the tune of $1 billion. But the council’s goal is not simply to continue throwing money into creating the fastest supercomputer, but to develop more innovative, forward-thinking IT. A new PCAST [...]

Making the switch from government to the private sector can make many workers feel like foreign exchange students. And, now, the Defense Department is looking at ways to strengthen the revolving door between government and industry – in a good way. The pilot Information Technology Exchange Program, authorized under the fiscal 2010 defense authorization bill, [...]

It’s back to the drawing board on government funding, as Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid announced he was abandoning a $1 trillion omnibus spending bill because it failed to garner enough support for passage. It’s likely Congress will pass a continuing resolution as a stopgap measure to keep the government open and functioning. A Senate [...]

Richard Stiennon, author of the new book Surviving Cyber War, has a sobering message about cybersecurity. While many information security experts are warning of the future threat, in an interview with cyber news and analysis site The New New Internet, the author and chief research analyst at IT-Harvest, said it’s time to acknowledge reality: Cyber [...]

Saying the United States needs “robust” new guidelines for online privacy, Secretary of Commerce Gary Locke laid out his department’s proposal for an online “Privacy Bill of Rights,” as well as a new federal office to administer it. Improving trust between online consumers and companies seems to be a major piece of the plan. “America [...]

The Defense Department is amending its plan to take 10 percent off payments to contractors if business systems that companies have supplied are deficient, according to a report in Federal Times. Instead — in perhaps a touch of holiday-spirit generosity or, more likely, the outcry from companies when the original plan was proposed – DoD [...]

A slew of recent polls carry optimistic results for electronic health record adoption. Wait, scratch that. New survey results are disastrous for the health IT forecast. Every day, it seems, a new headline trumpets the imminent success or the certain demise of health IT at the same time, leaving many feeling confused about the conflicting [...]