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Health Center Partners of Southern California Members Org Receives Oral Health Care Services Grant
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Health Center Partners of Southern California Members Org Receives Oral Health Care Services Grant


HHS Health and Human ServicesThe U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has awarded $2.6 million in grants to seven members of the Health Center Partners of Southern California to help improve the center’s oral health care services.

Clinicas de Salud Del Pueblo, Neighborhood Healthcare, North County Health Services, La Maestra Community Health Centers, San Diego American Indian Health Center, San Ysidro Health Center and Vista Community Clinic received a grant ranging from $350,000 to $525,000, HCP said Monday.

The grant will support the centers to not only help improve its oral health care offerings but also steer patients to Federally Qualified Health Centers where integrated preventive oral care can be administered.

Fernando Sañudo, Vista Community Clinic CEO, said that the grant will allow the clinics to offer mobile dental services to schools, local businesses and community events in Lake Elsinore, Riverside and north San Diego County.

The grants are a part of the HHS country-wide drive that has awarded $156 million to 420 health centers with funding managed by the the Health Resources and Service Administration.

The project has since helped treat 785,000 patients through the hire of 1,600 new dentists, dental hygienists, assistants and technicians.

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Rose Gottemoeller to Become NATO Deputy Secretary-General in October
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Rose Gottemoeller to Become NATO Deputy Secretary-General in October


Rose Gottemoeller
Rose Gottemoeller

Rose Gottemoeller, the State Department‘s undersecretary for arms control and international security, has been appointed to succeed Alexander Vershbow as deputy secretary-general of NATO beginning Oct. 1.

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said Monday Gottemoeller will be the first woman to hold that position in the alliance’s history.

In her current role, she advises the State Department secretary on arms control, nonproliferation and political military issues.

She previously served as assistant secretary of state for the Bureau of Arms Control, Verification and Compliance, director of the Carnegie Moscow Center and chief negotiator for the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty.

Gen. Mark Welsh: US Air Force Needs 60K More Airmen
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Gen. Mark Welsh: US Air Force Needs 60K More Airmen


Mark Welsh
Mark Welsh

Gen. Mark Welsh, outgoing U.S. Air Force chief of staff, has said the military service will need as many as 60,000 airmen to increase the branch’s capability and expand in the space, cyber and remotely piloted aircraft domains, DoD Buzz reported Monday.

Brendan McGarry reports that Welsh told Defense News’ Aaron Mehta in an interview that the Air Force aims for an end strength of 321,000 personnel by fiscal 2019 but at present needs between 40,000 and 60,000 airmen to fulfill its mission.

The Air Force’s active-duty members will remain at 317,000 by fiscal year 2017, according to report.

“If you look at just bedding down the F-35 over the next 15-20 years, it’s going to take 30,000 airmen,” Welsh told Mehta during the interview at the Pentagon.

“If we’re not allowed to divest the airmen who are doing other things today for our Air Force to put against the F-35 fleet, you start with 30,000 more that are required,” he added.

Welsh also said the limited headcount will affect airmen retention at the Air Force over time, McGarry reports.

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2nd Marine Corps Attack Squadron to Transition to Lockheed’s F-35Bs
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2nd Marine Corps Attack Squadron to Transition to Lockheed’s F-35Bs


F-35The U.S. Marine Corps will redesignate a Yuma, Arizona-based squadron as marine fighter attack squadron 211 on June 30 as the unit transitions from AV-8B Harrier aircraft to Lockheed Martin-built F-35B fighter jets, DoD Buzz reported Tuesday.

Hope Hodge Seck writes the redesignation of VMA 211 squadron comes after it accepted the first two F-35Bs on May 9 and as the service branch prepares to field the first operational unit of the fighter jets – VMFA-121 – to Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni in Japan in January.

VMA 211 will become the second squadron to operate the fighter jets, which achieved initial operating capability in July 2015.

Lt. Col. Chad Vaughn is also scheduled Thursday to succeed Lt. Col. William Maples as commanding officer of the squadron, Seck reports.

The service branch will eventually replace the Harrier, EA-6B Prowler and F/A-18 Hornet jets with the F-35 aircraft, according to the report.

Marine Corps officials told DoD Buzz that the Prowler is scheduled to retire in 2016, followed by the Harrier in 2026 and Hornet and Super Hornet jets by 2030s.

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3 Army Events Seek to Assess Cyber Tools for Warfighters
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3 Army Events Seek to Assess Cyber Tools for Warfighters


cyberThe U.S. Army has launched three events in an effort to assess and procure cyber platforms designed to help soldiers identify and counter cyber threats.

“Cyber Blitz, Cyber Quest and Cyber Innovation Challenge are not competing events,” Col. Joseph Dupont, trail chief for the Army cyber acquisition task force, said in a statement released Tuesday.

“They complement each other through a partnership to inform decisions and give program managers a venue to quickly assess the operational readiness of new capabilities.”

The service branch’s communications-electronics research, development and engineering center held the first Cyber Blitz event in April at Fort Dix in New Jersey in an effort to help uniformed personnel perform electromagnetic and cyber operations through interactions with various staff functions.

The Army’s Cyber Center of Excellence will hold its inaugural Cyber Quest event in July at Fort Gordon in Georgia to assess cyber platforms that have reached the Technology Readiness Level 6 and 7 designation, Heininger reports.

The center also plans to address insider threat and malware detection, electronic warfare sensors as well as mission planning in defensive cyber operations through Cyber Quest 2017.

The cyber focal office of the assistant Army secretary for acquisition, logistics and technology will collaborate with the cyber COE and the Army Cyber Command to conduct in July the fourth Cyber Innovation Challenge, which seeks to evaluate and purchase prototypes of cyber tools for warfighters through partnerships with small defense contractors, the report added.

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FBI, State Dept Join Illegal Diamond Trade & Threat Financing Forum
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FBI, State Dept Join Illegal Diamond Trade & Threat Financing Forum


PeopleThe FBI and the State Department are helping to lead a global law enforcement forum on diamond trafficking, illegal trade and threat financing which will run until Thursday.

The FBI said Tuesday the Europol-hosted forum will focus on the use of diamonds for trade-based money laundering, crime financing and other illegal purposes.

“Europol is interested in this topic from several angles – robbery crimes, money laundering, and terrorist financing activities – due to the high value and portability of diamonds,” said Wil van Gemert, Europol deputy director.

“Precious stones and gold are still readily liquid and moveable assets that can be easily traded and transported over borders.”

The three-day event is co-sponsored by the World Customs Organization and will bring together senior law enforcement and customs officials; regulatory bodies; and anti-money laundering and private sector experts, the FBI added.

Stephen Richardson, FBI assistant director for the criminal investigative division, said the forum aims to support cooperation and information sharing among global law enforcement partners to address illegal trade that funds criminal activity.

The forum looks to facilitate law enforcement partnerships to help identify, dismantle and disrupt criminal networks associated with the illicit diamond trade, FBI noted.

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USAF Tests Lockheed-Developed F-35A Combat Readiness Capacity, Aircraft Nears IOC Declaration
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USAF Tests Lockheed-Developed F-35A Combat Readiness Capacity, Aircraft Nears IOC Declaration


F-35Service members from the 388th Fighter Wing and Reserve 419th Fighter Wing led the first off-station deployment exercise of seven Lockheed Martin-built F-35A Lightning II units that works to meet initial operational capability targets within the year.

The U.S. Air Force said Monday the fighter aircraft were tested at Mountain Home Air Force Base to observe their capacity in close air support, aerial interdiction, limited suppression and destruction of enemy aircraft.

Lockheed also provided the aircraft’s information technology infrastructure – the Autonomous Logistics Information System — as well as mission systems software, spare parts and logistics services to support the deployments.

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Army’s AMRDEC Org Conducts Quality Assurance Test on Apache Helicopters for South Korea
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Army’s AMRDEC Org Conducts Quality Assurance Test on Apache Helicopters for South Korea


Apache on seaA quality assurance team from the U.S. Army‘s Aviation and Missile Research, Development and Engineering Center has inspected AH-64 Apache attack helicopters South Korea purchased through a foreign military sales deal with the U.S. government.

The center performs QA tests to help ensure that domestically made systems or services sold to international defense customers meet the same quality standards required for the U.S. military, the Army said Monday.

AMRDEC collaborates with the Army’s Security Assistance Command, Aviation and Missile Command Security Assistance Management Directorate, Program Executive Office Aviation, Joint Munitions Command,  Apache Attack Helicopter Project Office and industry partners to conduct aircraft inspections.

Boeing is the manufacturer of Apache helicopters.

Paul Anderson, chief of the Army’s aviation systems quality branch, said that U.S. government flight representatives are the designated approving authority for contractor flights, procedures and crews.

“They ensure contractor compliance and act as the government insurance agent by assuming some of the risk of loss for aircraft,” Anderson added.

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OPM Seeks to Streamline Info on Data Breaches Through Website Update; Beth Cobert Comments
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OPM Seeks to Streamline Info on Data Breaches Through Website Update; Beth Cobert Comments


Beth Cobert
Beth Cobert

The Office of Personnel Management has updated its website in an effort to streamline information on the two data breaches in 2015 that compromised data of at least 21 million former and current federal employees, Federal News Radio reported Monday.

Meredith Somers writes Beth Cobert, acting OPM director, told federal employees affected by the cyber breaches to assess the website’s frequently asked questions section.

The website’s FAQ section contains six categories that detail information on the cyber attack on OPM’s background check systems, notification and identify protection assistance OPM offers to victims of data intrusions, and cybersecurity measures that the agency launched in response to the incidents.

“The updated site includes new information as well as information we’re providing as a result of questions and feedback we have received from those who have visited the site,” Cobert said in a letter to federal employees.

She noted in the letter that OPM has completed the release of notification letters to cyber attack victims and has begun to resend letters to those who failed to receive the initial notifications due to changed or incorrect addresses, according to the report.

OPM has started efforts to extend identify protection and credit monitoring services to up to 10 years and has raised the identity theft insurance coverage from $1 million to $5 million in compliance with the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2016, said Cobert, an inductee into Executive Mosaic’s Wash100 for 2016.

“This increase was put into effect on June 1, and impacted individuals do not have to do anything to be covered by this increase,” she added.

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Nextgov: OPM Hack Affected Victims’ Family Members
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Nextgov: OPM Hack Affected Victims’ Family Members


cyber-hack-network-computerThe Office of Personnel Management has said the effects of the 2015 data breach extends to the family members and contacts of 21.5 million individuals whose records were compromised, Nextgov reported Monday.

Aliya Sternstein writes OPM updated its FAQ that said hackers gained access to security clearance background investigation forms which includes information on family members, co-habitants and other close contacts.

OPM officials said the information does not include the family members and contacts’ Social Security numbers and the people impacted remains at 21.5 million, Sternstein reported.

Michael Amato, an agency spokesman, said the website was updated to address feedback from impacted individuals and the definition of impacted has not changed.

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