A provision in the annual defense bill continues the controversy surrounding the vaccine. The first TR-3 F-35's initial checkout flight comes as the Joint Program Office hunts for a way to accelerate deliveries, perhaps using interim software. The department is also extending financial help programs to give more support to veterans having trouble making loan payments. More than 70,000 veterans died by suicide from 2011 to 2001. The Defense Department will pay plaintiffs' legal fees for two lawsuits. Virus infection cases within the VA health care system are up more than 200% in the last two months. A scathing federal report has found New Jersey's two state-run veterans homes were unprepared to keep residents safe during the COVID-19 outbreak. Active cases among VA patients have nearly tripled in the last month. The accuracy rate of the data was supposed to be at least 90 percent, but the IG found errors in 24 of the 25 registry records they reviewed. The annual defense authorization bill debate in the House focused mainly on hot-button social issues. Load More