The Coast Guard has undergone numerous changes since the attacks of September 11, 2001, most notably moving from the Department of Transportation to its new home at the Department of Homeland Security. Change within the Coast Guard has become an everyday occurrence as our mission dictates flexible maneuvering to meet the challenges of day-to-day operations. As one of the many operating divisions within the Coast Guard system, the Pharmacy Program also is experiencing a sea of change.

WASHINGTON — While VA has quickly rolled out its new caregiver-assistance program for Iraq and Afghanistan veterans, speed may have come at the expense of transparency and consistency. Or, so said caregivers who report trouble understanding the limitations of the act, as well as disparities in how VA determines the size of the caregiver stipend.

One of the most stimulating aspects of being a federal medicine provider is the truly global nature of our medical community and patients. Whether at a combat support hospital at Camp Bastian, Afghanistan, a health clinic in Diego Garcia, British Indian Ocean Territories, or the 8th Medical Group, Kunsan Air Base, South Korea, few places on this planet have not been touched at some point by federal medicine.