Soldiers could be at risk!

alledan

Pentagon-AP -- Defense officials warn that U-S soldiers could be at risk of getting infected blood transfusions because of a shoddy automated blood-tracking system.Pentagon health officials acknowledge that the system is flawed and mismanaged. They hope to have serious problems fixed by 2003 with the help of I-B-M. The computer firm signed on last month to help troubleshoot the program.The Defense Blood Standard System is what the military uses to keep track of blood and its derivatives from donation to transfusion.A report by the Defense Department's inspector general finds several problems. The system can't keep track of all blood donors. That means a donor barred at one donation center might still be able to give blood at another. It also can't keep tabs on everyone who might receive tainted blood.

averagedude

Sounds like they went with the lowest bidder the first time around now the governemnt ends up spending more money to fix problems that wouldn't exist if they had gone with the higher bidder to begin with.

rodgerglide

The government is not required to go with the lowest bidder.They can,and have sometimes,told a bidding company that they cannot do the job for that small amount of money.Unfortunatly,politics has control of who does and who does not get awarded the job. I have seen a contract awarded and then taken away and given to another company in the space of one day.Lousy system in my opinion.

gurn

The Army had my bloodtype wrong for seven years; I guess I was in danger before it was cool, and didn't even know it.