Friday, Nov. 9, 2012. Homeland Security Today.US Daily Briefing

Friday, November 9, 2012

Daily News & Analysis Continuous Monitoring of Federal Networks Must Result in Change, Cybersecurity Experts Agree On Sept. 28, President Barack Obama signed the 2013 Continuing Appropriations Resolution (Public Law 112-175) that largely funded the government temporarily for six months at the previous year's levels. The continuing resolution... » TSA Pre✓™ Boarding Pass Hack: Real Threat or Red Herring? Bloggers and even a few respected journalists and IT security experts in recent weeks have been quick to join a growing chorus of voices concerned about the security of airline boarding passes used in the Transportation Security... »

Industry News

Symantec to Unveil New Focus Strategy for Cybersecurity Next Quarter

Steve Bennett, CEO of Symantec Corp., kicked off the Symantec Government Symposium 2012 Wednesday with an announcement that the company soon would unveil a major new focus strategy in January. Speaking at the Washington... »

Accenture Awarded Biosurveillance Contract from Department of Homeland Security

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) awarded Accenture Federal Services a $3 million, one-year contract to help the Office of Health Affairs (OHA) enhance its biosurveillance capabilities using social media analytics. The... »

Reports of Interest

Critical Infrastructure Protection: An Implementation Strategy Could Advance DHS's Coordination of Resilience Efforts across Ports and Other Infrastructure

Critical Infrastructure Protection: An Implementation Strategy Could Advance DHS's Coordination of Resilience Efforts across Ports and Other Infrastructure - GAO report to Congress »

Homeland Defense: DOD Needs to Address Gaps in Homeland Defense and Civil Support Guidance

Homeland Defense: DOD Needs to Address Gaps in Homeland Defense and Civil Support Guidance - GAO report to Congress »

Department of Homeland Security: Taking Further Action to Better Determine Causes of Morale Problems Would Assist in Targeting Action Plans

Department of Homeland Security: Taking Further Action to Better Determine Causes of Morale Problems Would Assist in Targeting Action Plans - GAO report to Congress »

Grants and Funding

Grants & Resources—Dangerous to Your Health

As Congress continues to debate 2013 appropriations in the lead-up to the election, the role and format of homeland security funding are part of the discussion in both houses. The language varies, from an expression of general... »

Where Obama Stands On Homeland, National Security-related Issues

WASHINGTON (AP) — A look at where President Barack Obama stands on some of the issues that the country will face in his second term. Terrorism: Approved the raid that found and killed Osama bin Laden, set policy that U.S.... »

Current Case Count - Multistate Fungal Meningitis Outbreak

http://www.cdc.gov/hai/outbreaks/meningitis-map.html

Multistate Fungal Meningitis Outbreak - Current Case Count

November 9, 2012 2:30 PM EST

Previous Case Count Maps

NOTICE: Going forward, we will be providing case count updates on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays.

Cases with Fungal Infections Linked to Steroid Injections

[View Larger Map]

Cases and Deaths with Fungal Infections Linked to Steroid Injections

Table by State

State	Total Case Counts	Peripheral Joint Infections	Deaths
TOTALS	438*	10	32
Florida (FL)	23	0	3
Georgia (GA)	1	0	0
Idaho (ID)	1	0	0
Illinois (IL)	2	0	0
Indiana (IN)	52	0	4
Maryland (MD)	23	0	1
Michigan (MI)	128	6	8
Minnesota (MN)	11	0	0
New Hampshire (NH)	13	4	0
New Jersey (NJ)	27	0	0
New York (NY)	1	0	0
North Carolina (NC)	3	0	1
Ohio (OH)**	15	0	0
Pennsylvania (PA)	1	0	0
Rhode Island (RI)	3	0	0
South Carolina (SC)	1	0	0
Tennessee (TN)	81	0	13
Texas (TX)	2	0	0
Virginia (VA)	50	0	2

*428 cases of fungal meningitis, stroke due to presumed fungal meningitis, or other central nervous system-related infection meeting the outbreak case definition, plus 10 peripheral joint infections (e.g., knee, hip, shoulder, elbow). No deaths have been associated with peripheral joint infections.

** Ohio previously reported 16 cases. Ohio has corrected their case count to 15 cases.

Case counts by state are based on the state where the procedure was performed, not the state of residence.

Related Information

• Current Case Counts Map - Multistate Fungal Meningitis Outbreak Investigation
• Previous Case Counts Maps by Date - Multistate Fungal Meningitis Outbreak Investigation
• Map of Healthcare Facilities that Received Three Recalled Lots* of Methylprednisolone Acetate (PF) from New England Compounding Center on September 26, 2012
  
  
  

Supreme Court to tackle key voting rights provision

November 9th, 2012

03:29 PM ET

Court to tackle key voting rights provision

The Supreme Court agreed today to decide whether the key enforcement provision of the landmark Voting Rights Act of 1965 should be scrapped, amid arguments it is a constitutionally unnecessary vestige of the civil rights era.

Known as Section 5, the provision gives the federal government open-ended oversight of states and localities with a history of voter discrimination. Any changes in voting laws and procedures in the covered states must be "pre-cleared" by federal authorities in Washington.

The provision was reauthorized by Congress in 2006 for 25 more years. This move prompted a lawsuit by officials in Shelby County, Alabama, who argued that the monitoring was overly burdensome and unwarranted.

The case could be one of the biggest the justices tackle this term, potentially offering a social, political and legal barometer on the progress of civil rights in the United States - and the justices take on the level of national vigilance still needed to ensure that minorities have equal access in the election process.

While the high court announced this week its intention to take up the issue, oral arguments - and, after that, a decision - won't come until next year.

Post by: CNN's Bill Mears Filed under: Civil Rights • Supreme Court

http://news.blogs.cnn.com/2012/11/09/supreme-court-to-tackle-key-voting-rights-provision/?hpt=hp_t2