TEFCA aims to facilitate nationwide health information exchange, but trust issues and interpretative differences in HIPAA regulations pose significant challenges. While technology enables data sharing, human and institutional frictions hinder progress, writes Steven Posnack, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Technology Policy/Principal Deputy National Coordinator for Health IT. TEFCA's framework seeks to align interpretations and ensure secure data exchanges, but differing views on what constitutes "treatment" under HIPAA can stall information flow. Despite these hurdles, over 60,000 locations are connected, and efforts continue to unify interpretations and enhance trust.

Laura Barrera's journey from an enlisted airman to a flight surgeon highlights the transformative potential of the Uniformed Services University's Enlisted to Medical School Preparatory Program, which supports enlisted service members in becoming military physicians. Initially serving as a flight medicine tech, Barrera was inspired by her brothers' military service and pursued a career in medicine, overcoming challenges such as balancing family life and rigorous academic demands. "I have been lucky in my career to always have leadership that has looked out for me and has always pushed me forward and helped me up," Barrera says.

The VA has announced a significant policy change allowing women Veterans to access gynecology care without a referral from a primary care provider. This move is expected to benefit over 1 million women Veterans, addressing a major barrier to health care access. The change is part of broader reforms under the Trump administration aimed at improving Veteran services, including reducing the benefits backlog and expanding health care clinics. VA Secretary Doug Collins emphasized the focus on customer service and convenience, while the Million Veteran Program continues to recruit women for medical research.

The VA's Electronic Health Record Modernization program is updating Veterans' health records to a new electronic platform, promising improved health care delivery. Despite positive aspects such as easier record management and enhanced provider access, the transition has faced issues like data access problems and mismanagement claims. The system is already in use at select VA centers, with plans for broader adoption by 2031. "Change is hard. There is no getting around that. It will take tremendous fortitude on the part of the VA and government leadership to hold the VA together during this time of tremendous change," said Dean Sittig, a professor and executive director of the Clinical Informatics Research Collaborative.

The US Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices has proposed ending automatic hepatitis B vaccination at birth for babies whose mothers test negative for the virus, recommending that those infants wait until at least 2 months old for their first dose. Experts argue the change ignores decades of safety data and could increase infections, since some pregnant people receive false-negative test results or are never screened at all, and babies can be exposed in their first weeks of life through infected caregivers, household contacts or even surfaces where the virus can survive for days.

The Medicare Diabetes Prevention Program has enrolled only 9,015 participants out of 16 million eligible beneficiaries since its 2018 launch, according to a report prepared for the CMS. The program, which offers 22 sessions on diet and exercise at no cost to participants, has not been widely advertised or implemented.