Office of the Secretary November 29, 2024 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The DoD is publishing this notice to announce that it is renewing the Defense Health Board (DHB).

This interim final rule implements Section 523 of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year (FY) 2020, which requires the DoD to provide Service members and their authorized representatives with one final review of requests for an upgrade in the characterization of a discharge or dismissal. This rule establishes the Discharge Appeal Review Board (DARB) as the DoD authority responsible for considering such requests after all other administrative remedies have been exhausted. This rule also details the procedures for a petitioner and their authorized representatives to request this final review, the standards the DARB will apply when considering a petitioner's request, and the procedures the Military Departments will follow after the DARB adjudicates the request. The purpose of DARB review is to ensure uniform standards of review are met for requests for upgrades of a discharge or dismissal regardless of the petitioner's service affiliation.

The Federal Medical Assistance Percentages (FMAP), Enhanced Federal Medical Assistance Percentages (eFMAP), and disaster-recovery FMAP adjustments for fiscal year 2026 have been calculated pursuant to the Social Security Act (the Act). These percentages will be effective from October 1, 2025, through September 30, 2026. This notice announces the calculated FMAP rates, in accordance with the Act, that the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) will use in determining the amount of Federal matching for state medical assistance (Medicaid), Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) Contingency Funds, Child Support collections, Child Care Mandatory and Matching Funds of the Child Care and Development Fund, Title IV-E Foster Care Maintenance payments, Adoption Assistance payments and Kinship Guardianship Assistance payments, and the eFMAP rates for the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) expenditures. Table 1 gives figures for each of the 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. This notice reminds states of adjustments available for states meeting requirements for disproportionate employer pension or insurance fund contributions and adjustments for disaster recovery. Based on the criteria for a qualifying state, one state meets the requirements for an adjustment for disaster recovery.