White House hires firm to head website group
WASHINGTON – Nearly a month into the health- care rollout and no end in sight to computer problems, the Obama administration says it’s finally getting someone outside the government to take the lead.
Administration officials announced Friday that one of the website’s subcontractors – QSSI, Inc. – is being promoted to general contractor with overall responsibility for fixing the HealthCare.gov website.
The problem-riddled site was supposed to be the online portal for uninsured Americans to get coverage under President Barack Obama’s health care law, but it has turned into a huge bottleneck instead.
Until now, officials at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services had the lead role.
QSSI has built a component of the website – called the data hub – that is working relatively well.
FDA officials preparing pet food safety rules
WASHINGTON – Amid incidents of pets dying from dog treats, the Food and Drug Administration is proposing long-awaited rules to make pet food and animal feed safer.
The rules stem from a sweeping food safety law passed by Congress almost three years ago. Like rules proposed earlier this year for human food, they would focus on preventing contamination before it begins.
The announcement comes as the FDA says it hasn’t yet determined a cause of almost 600 dog deaths believed to be linked to pet jerky treats imported from China. The agency has been trying for six years to determine what exactly is causing those illnesses.
The proposed rules would require those who sell pet food and animal feed in the United States – including importers – to follow certain sanitation practices and have detailed food safety plans. All of the manufacturers would have to put individual procedures in place to prevent their food from becoming contaminated.
The rules would also help human health by aiming to prevent foodborne illnesses in pet food that can be transferred to humans.
Associated Press
