The Pentagon announced new rules this week that would allow women to serve closer to the front lines and will be implemented later this summer. The changes would allow women to serve in non-infantry battalion jobs, such as radio operators, intelligence analysts, medics, radar operators and tank mechanics. This could open up 14,000 new jobs to female troops, largely in the army and marine corps.  

Repeal of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell has never been closer. But while perceptions within the military of gay and lesbian servicemembers may have changed, discriminatory attitudes about gender and race remain.

More women than ever are returning home from military duty, but many Veteran Affairs centers don’t have adequate services for womens' health. We talk this morning with Ann Brown, director of the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in  Martinsburg, West Virginia, and retired Marine Capt. Anu Bhagwati, executive director of the Service Women's Action Network, about what VA facilities need to do to better accommodate female needs.