Last week, a divided Department of Labor Administrative Review Board (“ARB”) agreed to reconsider its ruling that the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (“OFCCP”) did not have jurisdiction over a federal contractor based solely on its participation in TRICARE, the Department of Defense’s managed health care program for active duty and retired military members and their families.

Yesterday a significant expansion of whistleblower protections for employees of federal contractors and subcontractors took effect.  The National Defense Authorization Act for 2013 (“NDAA”) extended whistleblower protections to an employee of a “contractor, subcontractor, or grantee” who makes a claim of gross mismanagement, gross waste, abuse of authority, a substantial and specific danger to public health or safety, or a violation of a law, rule, or regulation related to a federal contract.  These protections do not apply to a disclosure related to an “element of the intelligence community” under the National Security Act of 1984.