March 29, 2024

Military COVID-19 Cases Continue to Rise

COVID-19 Cases

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The military is experiencing a lower coronavirus infection rate than the general public, reports Navy Times, but the number of positive cases continues to go up. “The statistics show that the safest place to be is aboard a deployed Navy ship,” DefSec Mark Esper said Monday during a Brookings Institution webinar. More than 2,000 sailors have contracted coronavirus, according to DoD data, accounting for 42 percent of the military’s cases.

The USS Harry S Truman remains offshore in the Atlantic Ocean to ensure combat readiness, Reuters reports. The Truman is considered a “clean” ship, free from the coronavirus thanks to a longer-than-expected deployment at sea that started in November. The deployment has kept its crew out of reach of a pandemic that is wreaking havoc elsewhere in the Navy, though the crew would love to head home.

Some sailors attempting to walk back on board the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt are showing new signs of the virus that sidelined the ship more than a month ago, despite testing negative for Covid-19, reports Politico. A second deployed Navy warship, the USS Kidd, was sidelined last week after the coronavirus spread among its crew members, but the service says it won’t be giving anymore ship-specific updates on how many people have caught the illness, reports Military.com.

Soldiers of the 82nd Airborne Division returning from a deployment in the Middle East didn’t get a normal homecoming. Instead of marching into a room full of  family members on Fort Bragg, loved ones stood beside cars decked out with hand-painted signs, as buses carrying weary paratroopers headed to a mandatory 14-day quarantine, reports Army Times.

The US mission in Afghanistan has for the first time refused to release data on insurgent attacks amid the implementation of the US-Taliban peace agreement, the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction said. Military Times reports the decision not to release the data comes as the Trump administration is eager for the agreement to be seen as successful.

The US military in Afghanistan warned the Taliban against continuing violence and to “return to the political path,” saying further attacks would lead to “responses,” reports The Hill.

Defense budget cuts are looming as the coronavirus pandemic places pressure on the federal budget across various agencies, reports The Hill. The Pentagon expects relatively flat budgets for the next few years due to economic constraints caused by the widening deficits in the country.

 

 

The Philippines has been cleared to buy six AH-1Z Viper attack helicopters with an estimated price tag of $450 million, reports Defense News, and the Pentagon OK’d another option, purchase of six AH-64E Apache at $1.5 billion. The choice of either American-made aircraft is not guaranteed, as that government is also considering a Turkish-made helicopter.

Veterans Affairs officials announced that the department’s top congressional liaison, Brooks Tucker, will also serve as acting chief of staff, filling another of VA’s most senior leadership vacancies, reports Military Times.

Military.com introduces readers to the new lieutenants joining the US Space Force. Enlisted airmen who sign up for the Space Force can expect to see a broader range of career opportunities than they had during their time in the Air Force, reports Air Force Magazine.

The US military is preparing to operate under pandemic restrictions for the foreseeable future even though some states are beginning to lift coronavirus lockdowns, reports Defense One.

Dr. Deborah Birx, White House coronavirus task force coordinator, on “Fox News Sunday” addressed the protests being conducted nationwide over stay-at-home orders. She said protesters who are not observing social distancing guidelines and are congregating without masks pose a danger to others, and she finds it “devastatingly worrisome,” reports Patch.com.

Gov. Larry Hogan has rejected a suggestion from Maryland’s lone Republican congressman, Rep. Andy Harris, that the state has adopted a totalitarian approach to fighting COVID-19, reports Maryland Matters.

A lawsuit filed Saturday against many of Maryland’s top officials is targeting laws crafted in response to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, reports WTOP News. The lawsuit is asking the court to step in and stop the executive orders and other regulations they claim are violating the rights of the people of Maryland.

Boredom during the coronavirus virus pandemic is leading people to a new hobby. Bird-watching has soared as bored Americans are finding a “fascinating world just outside their windows,” reports The Associated Press.

Contracts:

General Dynamics Electric Boat Corp. (GDEB), Groton, Connecticut, is awarded $60,594,296 for a cost-plus-fixed-fee contract to provide US Trident II Strategic Weapon System (SWS) ship alterations and United Kingdom SWS ship alterations for Strategic Systems Program shipboard integration installations. Work will be performed in Bremerton, Washington (29%); Groton, Connecticut (24%); Kings Bay, Georgia (24%); Bangor, Washington (9%); Cape Canaveral, Florida (7%); Norfolk, Virginia (3%); Washington, DC (2%); Faslane, Scotland (1%); and Plymouth, England (1%). Work is expected to be complete by April 2024. The maximum dollar value, including the base period and two option years, is $60,594,296. Fiscal 2020 operations and maintenance (Navy) contract funds in the amount of $8,511,473; other procurement (Navy) contract funds in the amount of $8,534,755; fiscal 2020 research, development, test and evaluation (Navy) contract funds in the amount of $3,171,978; and United Kingdom funds in the amount of $2,098,018 are being obligated at time of award. Funds in the amount of $8,511,473 will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was a sole-source acquisition in accordance with 10 US Code 2304(c)(1) and (4).  Strategic Systems Programs, Washington, DC, is the contracting activity (N-00030-20-C-0028).

Virginia Pilot Association, Virginia Beach, Virginia, is awarded an $8,175,544 firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract to provide support services to assist with the navigation of ships for Commander, Navy Region Mid-Atlantic Port Operations Division. All work will be performed in Norfolk, Virginia, and is expected to be complete by May 2025. This contract will include a 60-month base ordering period with an additional six-month ordering period option pursuant of Federal Acquisition Regulation 52.217-8; an option to extend services, which if exercised, will bring the total value to $9,058,663. The base ordering period is expected to be completed by May 2025; if the option is exercised, the ordering period will be completed by December 2025. Fiscal 2020 operations and maintenance (Navy) funds in the amount of $50,000 will be obligated to fund the contract’s minimum amount and funds will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. One source was solicited for this non-competitive, sole-source requirement in accordance with Federal Acquisition Regulation 6.302-1, and one offer was received. Naval Supply Systems Command Fleet Logistics Center Norfolk, Contracting Department Norfolk, Virginia, is the contracting activity.

KVG LLC, Gettysburg, Pennsylvania (W564KV-20-D-2002); Crowley Government Services Inc., Jacksonville, Florida (W564KV-20-D-2004); Agility International Inc., Alexandria, Virginia (W564KV-20-D-2003); Maersk Line Ltd, Norfolk, Virginia (W564KV-20-D-2005); Aecom Management Services Inc., Germantown, Maryland (W564KV-20-D-2006); and American Roll-on Roll-off Carrier Group, Parsippany, New Jersey (W564KV-20-D-2007), will compete for each order of the $49,010,000 contract for the transportation of equipment, cargo and passengers within the European Command area of operations. Bids were solicited via the internet with 16 received. Work locations and funding will be determined with each order, with an estimated completion date of May 9, 2023. The 409th Contracting Support Brigade, Kaiserslautern, Germany, is the contracting activity.

The Lighthouse for the Blind, St. Louis, Missouri (W81XWH-19-D-0008); Atlantic Diving Supply Inc., Virginia Beach, Virginia (W81XWH-19-D-0007); American Purchasing Services LLC, Miramar, Florida (W81XWH-19-D-0006); and TQM LLC, St. Charles, Missouri (W81XWH-19-D-0009), will compete for each order of the $45,000,000 contract for sets, kits and outfits to supply complete medical, surgical, pharmaceutical, dental, laboratory and veterinary equipment, and material sets. Bids were solicited via the internet with four received. Work locations and funding will be determined with each order, with an estimated completion date of May 4, 2024. US Army Medical Research Acquisition Activity, Fort Detrick, Maryland, is the contracting activity.

Raytheon Co., Dulles, Virginia, was awarded a $27,472,296 hybrid (cost-no-fee, firm-fixed-price) contract to provide technical expertise, system operators, maintenance and life-cycle support for the sustainment, operations and support management of numerous training aids, devices, simulators, and simulations. Bids were solicited via the internet with three received. Work will be performed in Kuwait, with an estimated completion date of Dec. 31, 2023. Fiscal 2020 defense overseas contingency transfer funds in the amount of $5,000,000 were obligated at the time of the award.  Army Contracting Command, Orlando, Florida, is the contracting activity (W900KK-20-C-0031).

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