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VA suffers cybersecurity problems
By Scott E. Rupp
 From problems with managing its case load to falsifying documents related to patient care, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs doesn't seem to be taking security seriously. The VA failed its Federal Information Security Management Act Audit for Fiscal Year 2014, but the VA is reportedly in the wake of taking action to fix its cybersecurity vulnerabilities and deficiencies. Oh, the surprise. This marks the 16th consecutive year the VA has failed the cybersecurity audit.
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June 2 survey results: Do you think civilian physicians are prepared to assess military veterans and their medical needs?
Ending veteran homelessness: How cities around the US are doing
Stars and Stripes
Since 2010, when President Barack Obama launched a five-year national campaign to end homelessness among veterans, the number of former service members living on the streets has dropped from more than 76,000 to below 50,000. In early January, officials in New Orleans declared that their city was the country's first to find permanent housing for all of its homeless veterans, who numbered 227 at the start of last year. Here's a look at efforts in a handful of other U.S. cities, based on figures provided by federal, state and local agencies.
Senate rejects extending veterans benefits to married gay couples and their kids
The Huffington Post
The Senate quietly rejected legislation that would have extended certain veterans' benefits to married same-sex couples and their children who live in states where their marriage isn't recognized.
During debate on the 2016 National Defense Authorization Act, Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., proposed amending the federal statute that prevents the Department of Veterans Affairs from granting comprehensive benefits to same-sex couples in states that don't recognize a same-sex marriage that was legally performed in a different state.
Handful of veterans bills make their way to the governor
The Day
While the two-year $40-billion budget garnered the most attention when the 2015 legislative session concluded recently, several bills that impact veterans were also passed.
Several legislators identified the greatest victory for veterans is a budget provision that calls for a 100 percent exemption from the state income tax for federally taxable military retirement pay.
'Appalling' law prevents IVF coverage for veterans
CBS News
 Servicemen and women who are wounded in war have to rebuild their lives, and the goal of having a family keeps many of them going. But an act by Congress decades ago is still preventing some veterans from achieving that goal, reports CBS News correspondent Jan Crawford.
Opinion: Disability payments to veterans
The New York Times (tiered subscription model)
To The New York Times editor regarding "The Risk of Over-Thanking Our Veterans," by Ken Harbaugh (Op-Ed, June 1): It is sad that one week after Memorial Day, The New York Times saw fit to run an essay lamenting the cost of compensating veterans for their disabilities. As Jon Stewart has said, if the government cannot fairly care for and compensate our disabled veterans, maybe it should stop creating so many of them. Indeed, the cost of providing benefits that these heroic men and women have earned pales in comparison with the overall cost of fighting a war.
Why companies need to take a 2nd look at hiring military veterans
Forbes
A lot of companies boast about their military hiring initiatives, but when it comes right down to it, few companies really do a good job of it. Despite their good intentions, companies often find that military experience isn't easily translated into civilian jobs so they skip over them in favor of someone with the formal degree or certification on their resume. That's why unemployment rates for military veterans remain higher than for the civilian population.
These veterans are realizing their dreams as small-business entrepreneurs
Task and Purpose
During the Veteran Women Igniting the Spirit of Entrepreneurship event in Washington, D.C., on May 30, veteran and military-spouse entrepreneurs gathered to workshop ideas, network and participate in break-out discussion sections.
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Veterans see more opportunities in agriculture
Great Falls Tribune
Paul Kanning had always dreamed of leaving his family farm growing up in northeastern Montana. But one night in 2003 during the invasion of Iraq, he unexpectedly decided the 1,200 acre farm he had resented for so long and that drove him into the U.S. Air Force, was now his destiny.
Wal-Mart expands its commitment to hiring veterans
NRF
Two years ago, Wal-Mart made a commitment to hire 100,000 military veterans by 2018. The Veterans Welcome Home Commitment guarantees a job offer to any U.S. veteran who has been honorably discharged from active duty since the program's launch. Under the guidance of Senior Director of Military Programs Gary M. Profit, the company has hired more than 92,000 veterans since their pledge in 2013 and has decided to expand their program to hire 250,000 veterans by the end of 2020, which would make veterans close to 20 percent of its U.S. workforce.
Suicide rate of female military veterans is called 'staggering'
Los Angeles Times
New government research shows that female military veterans commit suicide at nearly six times the rate of other women, a startling finding that experts say poses disturbing questions about the backgrounds and experiences of women who serve in the armed forces.
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