People

States improve transparency of Recovery Act spending

State governments in Kentucky, Illinois, Minnesota and Utah made the most dramatic progress in reporting publicly their federal economic stimulus spending online in the last six months, according to a new report.

People

EHRs: HHS walks a tightrope

The department needs to set the bar low enough to get broad adoption and high enough to achieve its goals for improving quality.

People

Measuring quality

The government's proposed regulation for electronic health records contains 29 quality-oriented measures that eligible doctors and hospitals must implement to qualify for incentive payments.

People

Data-driven health care: Will doctors buy in?

Many doctors are not convinced that data collection leads to better care or that the federal government can help them do their jobs better.

Cybersecurity

Four U.S. agencies deficient in controlling stimulus reporting errors, auditors say

Inspectors general have identified shortcomings in the monitoring of mistakes and omissions in Recovery Act reporting at four federal agencies.

Digital Government

NTIA three months behind on broadband grant distribution, GAO says

The National Telecommunications and Information Administration is behind schedule in awarding the first round of broadband grants, according to the General Accountability Office.

Modernization

Recovery.gov site has new page to fix problems

The board in charge of tracking economic stimulus law spending has instituted new logic checks and policies to fix errors.

People

The dawn of the 2.0 presidency

The foremost story of 2009 has been the transition from the Bush administration to President Barack Obama's administration -- and all the power shifts that trickle down through technology, policy, procurement and management in government.

Acquisition

Agencies spending stimulus bucks through no-bid contracts, GAO finds

SBA, HUD and NASA awarded 35 percent or more of their stimulus law contracts noncompetitively, according to a new GAO report.

Digital Government

The news of 2009: From buzz to bust

Some stories christened by the Buzz of Week in 2009 have proven less buzz-worthy than others.

Digital Government

HHS to award $235M in health IT grants to local communities

The Health and Human Services Department will fund 15 communities to demonstrate the use of digital health records.

People

Recovery site hosts bad data, GAO says

The Recovery.gov Web site should move quickly to address data quality problems, a GAO official recommends.

Digital Government

Hospitals tighten security on patient data

More than half of health care executives surveyed said they are buying new cybersecurity tools to comply with the economic stimulus law's requirements to protect patient data.

People

Survey shows federal agencies need help with transparency

A new survey of 200 federal managers found that 54 percent have some capabiities in place, but not all, to meet new transparency requirements.