By Debbie Gregory.

The VA’s $16 billion health information technology project has hit a major snag, thanks to a West Palm Beach, Florida internist who runs in Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago social circle.

Former VA Secretary David Shulkin, MD, announced the VA’s intent to transition its legacy EHR, VistA, to Cerner last year.

Internist Bruce Moskowitz has been an outspoken critic of Cerner’s software, causing him to object to using the company for the massive transformation of the VA’s digital records system.

The involvement of Moskowitz and his crony, Marvel Entertainment chairman and Trump confidant Ike Perlmutter, highlights the participation of Trump’s social circle in government decisions.

Dr. Moskowitz has been weighing in on the 10-year project, much to the distain of many clinicians involved in the effort.

Despite the delays, on April 25^th, a VA spokesperson said that finalizing the Cerner-VA contract was a priority for Acting Secretary Robert Wilkie.

“Under Acting Secretary Wilkie’s leadership, senior VA officials are now on the same page, speaking with one voice to veterans, employees and outside stakeholders, such as Congress and veterans service organizations, and are focused on a number of key priorities in the short term,” said Curt Cashour, VA press secretary.

Although VA Secretary David Shulkin was fired by President Trump in late March, his goal was for the VA to create a single common EHR system with the Department of Defense using a shared Cerner Millennium EHR platform.

Despite its leadership vacancies, such as acting CIO Scott Blackburn resigning and VA secretary nominee Rear Admiral Ronny Jackson withdrawing, the VA insists that finalizing a decision on the agency’s electronic health record modernization is a near-term priority.

By Debbie Gregory.

During a March 6th House Armed Services Committee hearing, lawmakers interrogated Marine Corps officials regarding a $150 million deal with Heckler & Koch to provide the service branch with some 50,000 HK416 rifles. This works out to approximately $3,000 each, almost five times the cost of the current M4, which cost $642 per rifle in 2013.

Called into question, besides the cost, was the Corp’s sidestepping of the normal acquisition process: the contract was sourced to foreign manufacturer Heckler & Koch without allowing American firearms companies to compete for the contract.

Although the longer rifle barrel and gas piston operating system gives the Heckler & Koch rifle an edge over the M4, it doesn’t seem like that justifies the higher price tag.

To be fair, when the Marine Corps purchased the M4’s, FN Herstal aggressively underbid both Remington and Colt, resulting in the deeply discounted price per weapon.

In questioning Lt. Gen. Brian D. Beaudreault, deputy commandant of Plans, Policies, and Operations, HASC Chairman Rep. Joe Wilson asked, “Do you believe that it is the best option to not compete a contract that could be as many as 50,814 rifles?”

When FN Herstal lodged a protest with the Government Accountability Office (GAO) over the issue of the Marine Corps not allowing competition to yield the best product for the lowest price, the GAO rejected that protest, claiming an exception in which “the supplies or services required by an agency are available from only one responsible source, and no other type of supplies or services will satisfy agency requirements.”

Here’s where the waters get a little murky. Those requirements would be determined by Marine Corps Systems Command’s Program Manager for Infantry Weapons Systems, and would likely involve Marine Systems Command (MARSYSCOM) supervisory lead engineer Sal Fanelli. Interestingly, before joining MARSYSCOM, Fanelli previously worked for Heckler & Koch.

By Debbie Gregory.

Deputy Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan believes that increased communication with defense contractors is a step in the right direction in order to optimize the Pentagon’s relationships with industry. The Defense Department’s No. 2 civilian, Shanahan manages the Pentagon and oversees the acquisition and budget efforts.

In a March 2 memorandum entitled “Engaging With Industry” Shanahan wrote: “Conducting effective, responsible and efficient procurement of supplies and services while properly managing the resultant contracts requires department personnel to engage in early, frequent and clear communications with suppliers.”

As the Trump administration sought to deepen relations between private industry and government, last April Defense Secretary Jim Mattis encouraged expanded Pentagon-industry relations.

The push for more Pentagon-industry communications comes after other top leaders have ordered restrictions on talking with the public and the press. Most recently, on March 1, U.S. Air Force leaders suspended all interviews, embeds, and base visits for media organizations “until further notice.”

Prior to that, in March 2017, the Chief of Naval Operations cautioned his people to be more careful in what they say in public, saying that he did not want to give adversaries useful information.

“Industry is often the best source of information concerning market conditions and technological capabilities,” Shanahan wrote. “This information is crucial to determining whether and how the industry can support the Department’s mission and goals.”

Shanahan believes that complying with ethical and legal limits “should not” cause defense and service officials to be reluctant to engage industry.

“The department’s policy continues to be that representatives at all levels of the department have frequent, fair, even and with industry on matters of mutual interest, as appropriate, in a manner that protects sensitive information, operations, sources, methods and technologies,” Shanahan wrote.

By Debbie Gregory.

We previously wrote about the deal for two new Air Force One airplanes that President Trump was trying to negotiate with Boeing CEO Dennis Muilenburg. After talks stalled, the president stepped in to push through a fixed-price deal that would require Boeing to buy the planes at an agreed price. Boeing would then be responsible to absorb any cost overruns.

The list price for one of Boeing’s 747-8s is $351.4 million, but the stock jumbo jets require significant and timely modifications before they will be ready to transport a president.

The president asked for the new planes to be done by 2021, the beginning of what would be a second term, which is three years sooner than the original plan of 2024. The two 747s are in California now, and although Boeing will be done upgrading the planes by then, but the Air Force testing requirements could take an additional three years.

And upon closer investigation, it now looks like that “informal” $3.9 billion deal for the two planes may not be such a deal.

It appears that a “fixed-price contract” is not the same thing as a “firm, fixed-price” contract. And that could be a problem.

Boeing officials have always been and remain adamantly opposed to a firm, fixed-price deal. Given that Boeing has had to absorb more than $2 billion in cost overruns while developing the Air Force’s new refueling tanker, it is no wonder that the company is trying to avoid the same situation with refitting the two commercial 747s for presidential use.

The current Air Force One planes began service in 1990 under former President George H.W. Bush and they are reaching near the end of their planned life.