Electronic health records have been touted by supporters of the technology, including National Health IT Coordinator David Blumenthal, as tools of better medicine for doctors. But, according to a report in The Des Moines Register, at one Iowa hospital, electronic medical records are also being used by the patients, themselves. University of Iowa Hospitals and [...]

The Department of Homeland Security launched a new 24-hour watch and warning center focused on combating the increasingly 24/7 cybersecurity threat. DHS Deputy Assistant Secretary Michael Brown joined White House Cybersecurity Coordinator Howard Schmidt and representatives of the Multi-State Information Sharing and Analysis Center on Nov. 18 to launch the MS-ISAC Cyber Security Operations Center [...]

Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.), federal Chief Information Officer Vivek Kundra and State Department Chief Information Security Officer John Streufert were awarded the National Cyber Security Leadership Award by the SANS Institute. Carper, Kundra and Streufert were selected by the information security training organization and think tank for their efforts to implement “continuous monitoring” of computer [...]

Former White House cyber guru Melissa Hathaway, who most recently called on Congress to take action on key cybersecurity initiatives, spoke before the American National Standards Institute about continuing cyber developments. Hathaway, who is the president of Hathaway Global Strategies and is also a senior adviser at Harvard Kennedy School’s Belfer Center for Science and [...]

Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano and Transportation Security Agency Administrator John Pistole announced their agencies would help expand the “If You See Something, Say Something,” public awareness campaign for the holiday season. The expanded efforts come as the transportation systems prepare for an influx of travelers for the holiday season and as DHS [...]

The game of musical chairs at the Federal Communications Commission continued this week as FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski announced key staff changes. First up, Genachowski named Sarah Whitesell to the media bureau as deputy chief. In Whitesell’s new role, she will take the lead in helping to create the bureau’s media policies, including broadcast ownership, [...]

Workers in the Social Security Administration are downloading outside software without permission, which can lead to malware incidents, according to a report by SSA’s inspector general. SSA employees and contractors are only allowed to download software critical to SSA’s function and must receive written permission before doing so. But SSA IG Patrick O’Carroll, whose report [...]

The Office of Personnel Management is likely to provide more information about a federal healthcare claims database in the face of outcry from privacy advocates. OPM was also scheduled to unveil the database Nov. 15, but Computerworld reports the date will also likely be postponed, so the public has more time to evaluate the program. [...]

Health and Human Services Chief Technology Officer Todd Park said HHS will begin awarding grants to healthcare providers who adopt health IT practices, but only if they can prove they are actually using the technology, according to Federal News Radio. The federal funds, provided for by the HITECH Act, will be disbursed beginning in a [...]