VA Official Resigns Over Growing Patient Care Scandal – Plus the 7 Gov Stories

On GovLoop Insights’ DorobekINSIDER:

• How did your retirement fare in the first quarter of the year? Should you be changing your TSP password? We take a look at your retirement in our interview with the TSP Board’s Kim Weaver.

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The SEVEN stories that impact your life

1. Federal Times: VA official resigns over growing patient care scandal – “Robert Petzel, the under secretary for Health at the Veterans Affairs Department, is resigning amidst growing calls for investigations into poor health care and long wait times that may have led to deaths at VA hospitals.”

2. AP: Obama considering new housing and budget leaders – “Shuffling his second-term Cabinet, President Barack Obama plans to nominate Housing Secretary Shaun Donovan to be budget director and is considering San Antonio Mayor Julian Castro to succeed Donovan, according to people familiar with the selection process.”

3. Washington Post: VA awards survivor benefits to first-known gay war widow – “The Department of Veterans Affairs has agreed to provide survivor benefits to the first-known same-sex war widow, marking a breakthrough for the gay-rights community, according to an advocacy group.”

4. FCW: Andreessen Horowitz leads $15 million funding round for OpenGov – “OpenGov, a financial data visualization startup that helps governments show how they are spending their money, is getting a $15 million investment as it looks to expand into the federal market.”

5. Government Executive: House to Vote on Firing VA Senior Execs – “The House will vote on legislation soon that seemingly would make it easier for the secretary of Veterans Affairs to fire or demote senior executives.”

6. Federal News Radio: Air Force budget cuts, military readiness, DoD mobility – “One of the interesting and oft-noted aspects of the Defense Department’s current budget troubles is that Congress is requiring DoD to make significant budget reductions while simultaneously refusing to let the Pentagon cut any of the things that it’s actually spending money on.”

7. National Journal: Why the U.S. Is Charging China With Cyberspying on American Companies – “The United States is charging the Chinese military with hacking into American companies in order to gain valuable trade secrets, marking the first time the U.S. has brought a criminal case against a foreign government for cyberspying.”