Townhall with Senator Hill December 19 in Marietta

Mountain View Community Center
December 19, 2009
9 am - 10 am

Townhall to Discuss 2010 Legislative Session Ga Capitol

Please join Senator Hill and Senate Majority Leader Chip Rogers for a townhall meeting to discuss the upcoming 2010 Session of the Georgia General Assembly. The event will take place this Saturday, December 19th from 9am to 10am at the Mountain View Community Center. This event is an opportunity for you to share your thoughts and concerns with Senator Hill as he prepares for the upcoming legislative year. Senator Hill encourages you to bring your comments and questions as he appreciates the opportunity to hear from all of you.

The Mountain View Community Center is located at 3400 Sandy Plains Road, Marietta, GA 30066.

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Lockheed Martin Delivers First C-5M Super Galaxy

/PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) today delivered the first fully modernized C-5M Super Galaxy to the U.S. Air Force at Warner Robins Air Logistics Center, Robins AFB, Ga.

The aircraft is the first of three developmental test C-5M aircraft to be delivered, with the other two to be delivered to Dover AFB, Del., in February 2009. All three aircraft successfully completed developmental testing in August 2008. Current Air Force plans call for Lockheed Martin to deliver 52 modernized C-5Ms.

"The C-5 fleet is now beginning to realize its full operational potential as we begin fielding both Avionics Modernization Program and Reliability Enhancement and Re-engining Program enhanced C-5s for the Air Force," said Lorraine Martin, vice president of the C-5 Program at Lockheed Martin. "The combined U.S. Air Force and Lockheed Martin team can take great pride in its success, which is keeping this national strategic airlift asset viable for decades to come."

The C-5M Super Galaxy is the product of a two-phase modernization effort. The Avionics Modernization Program (AMP) provides a state-of-the-art glass cockpit and a digital backbone to support the Reliability Enhancement and Re-engining Program (RERP) modifications. Forty-six C-5 aircraft have completed the AMP modifications. The aircraft already returned to the fleet have logged more than 45,000 hours with the new systems, including many hours flown in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.

RERP is the second phase of the modernization effort, which adds new GE CF6-80C2 commercial engines (military designation F108-GE-100) and 70 other enhancements or replacements of major components and subsystems. The additional 10,000 lbs of thrust per propulsion system creates 40,000 lbs of additional thrust across the platform, significantly improving operational performance. This comprehensive modernization program improves the fleet mission-capable rate (aircraft availability) and the overall reliability and maintainability of the aircraft while reducing total ownership costs. C-5 modernization is expected to pay for itself with operational savings.

The C-5 has been the backbone of strategic airlift in every engagement since it entered service. It is the only aircraft capable of carrying 100 percent of certified air-transportable cargo, with a dedicated passenger compartment enabling commanders to have troops and their equipment arrive in an area of operation simultaneously. The C-5 can carry twice the cargo of other strategic airlift systems. With more than 70 percent of its structural service life remaining, Lockheed Martin is committed to sustaining the C-5 fleet throughout its lifecycle. The C-5M Super Galaxy will continue to be a force enabler through 2040.

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Federal Jury Finds Chiropractor Guilty of $3 Million Health Care Fraud Scam

A jury in federal district court has returned a guilty verdict against DR. WILLIAM STEARNS, DC, 47, of Marietta, Georgia, on 18 charges of health care fraud and five charges of money laundering.

United States Attorney David E. Nahmias said, “Today’s verdict sends the message that health care providers who fraudulently bill for their services will be held accountable for their crimes. The Defendant and his partners received millions of dollars to which they were not entitled, by lying to insurers about the services they were providing patients. These lies contribute to the problem of soaring health costs for all, and will be vigorously prosecuted.”

According to United States Attorney Nahmias and the information presented in court:

In 2004, STEARNS and two partners, fellow chiropractors STEVEN LEVINE and CHRISTOPHER TOPEL, operated three clinics around the Atlanta area under the name Comprehensive Care Medical Group (“CCMG”). CCMG, under the Defendant’s direction, fraudulently billed Blue Cross/Blue Shield of Georgia for two separate back pain procedures, costing that insurer alone approximately $3 million. Both LEVINE and TOPEL previously pleaded guilty to the charges.

First, the Defendant and his partners fraudulently billed for a procedure known as Vertebral Axial Decompression (“VAX-D”) – a non-invasive back pain procedure that uses a mechanical table to stretch a patient’s spine. Blue Cross/Blue Shield of Georgia considers VAX-D to be investigational and not medically necessary, and made clear to health care providers that it did not cover the procedure. Thus, the Defendant, along with LEVINE and TOPEL, were convicted of having lied to Blue Cross about what procedures they were performing in order to get paid for this non-covered procedure. Specifically, instead of using the specific billing code assigned to VAX-D, CCMG used a different code that pertained to surgical nerve decompression procedures. The Indictment charged that the Defendant used that code because he and the others knew Blue Cross would pay for it, and would not pay for VAX-D. The proof at trial included testimony from the Defendant’s former employees, several of whom were explicitly instructed to not refer to the procedure as “VAX-D” in patient files.

Second, the Defendant also fraudulently billed for an electrical stimulation procedure using a device known as “Hako-Med.” Instead of billing for a relatively low-paying electrical stimulation procedure, the Defendant instead claimed to be performing surgical procedures known as nerve block injections. This was false, but allowed the Defendant to bill for rates 5-10 times as high as if he had correctly billed for electrical stimulation.

STEARNS could receive a maximum sentence of 230 years in prison and a fine of up to $5,750,000. Sentencing is scheduled for February 12, 2009 at 4:00 pm before United States District Judge Clarence Cooper.

This case was investigated by Special Agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation along with the U.S. Office of Personnel Management.

Assistant United States Attorneys Teresa D. Hoyt and Justin S. Anand are prosecuting the case.

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Beauty Pageant Brings Abuse Into the Light and Enables Women to Come Out of the Shadows and Win Their Life Back

PRNewswire/ -- The Mrs. Globe Pageant crowned a new Ms. North America, Cammie McBrayer of Marietta, Georgia, to help empower women across the nation to say no to abuse. Cammie feels honored that the people of the world voted for her as the "people's choice" to represent North America in the upcoming Mrs. Globe Pageant to become the international spokesperson for the W.I.N. Foundation.

The Mrs. Globe Pageant is an international pageant that is unique; it is a fundraiser for the W.I.N. (Women in Need) Foundation. W.I.N. is a non-profit outreach for abuse recovery and offers a 20-week abuse and self-esteem recovery program for women, men and children called the Right Living Program, which was founded by Dr. Tracy Kemble in 1995 (http://www.womeninneed.org/). As Ms. North America, Cammie will have the opportunity to have a Right Living Program weekend in her area during the upcoming year.

Ms. North America is also hosting "Kids helping Kids, Party with a Purpose" on November 21, 2008. There will be a DJ and a lot of dancing; over 100 12- and 13-year-olds are expected to attend, with a goal of $3,000 to benefit W.I.N.'s International Christmas for Kids Campaign. The kids will have the opportunity to see video from a past Christmas for Kids, so they get a firsthand view of the change that their fundraiser has made in kids' lives throughout the world.

Cammie's goal is to create an organization in the South to assist and empower women that have been through traumatic changes. This would be done through education, image consulting and through the Right Living Principals created by founder Dr. Tracy Kemble: the ultimate connection of mind, body and spirit.

As a national titleholder, Cammie will compete internationally in August 2009 for the coveted title of Mrs. Globe. Her dream is to take this campaign globally to help women reinvent themselves, so they have the power to overcome poverty and provide a strong, safe environment for their families. If you would like more information, please contact cammie@cammiemcbrayermsnorthamerica.com.

Keep track of Cammie's progress in her mission to help women and families overcome abuse; visit her website: http://cammiemcbrayermsnorthamerica.com/.

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Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor Recognized for Excellence in Performance Based Logistics

PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- The U.S. Department of Defense has recognized Lockheed Martin's (NYSE:LMT) F-22 Raptor as an exemplary program in Performance Based Logistics (PBL), an innovative support approach that provides higher aircraft readiness to warfighters and lower overall costs to taxpayers.

Randy T. Fowler, Assistant Deputy Under-Secretary of Defense for Materiel Readiness, presented the 2008 PBL System Level Award to the F-22 team on Sept. 30 at the Aerospace Industries Association Fall Product Support Conference in Hilton Head, S.C. The PBL awards program recognizes government and industry teams that demonstrate outstanding achievements in PBL development, implementation and execution. This is the third time that a Lockheed Martin program or company has won the annual award.

The F-22 Raptor PBL Team won the System Level Award. Composed of Lockheed Martin Aeronautics, Boeing, and Pratt & Whitney, along with the U.S. Air Force, the team was honored for producing the highest readiness rates in the program's history.

"The award is a huge win for the 478th, the air logistics centers, contractors and aeronautical systems center. It's an even more significant and enabling win for our warfighters, providing them with better ability to fly, fight and win," said Thomas Severyn, director of the 478th Aeronautical Systems Wing, Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio.

The F-22 was designed for supportability and self-sufficiency with a focus on reduced logistics costs. The improved reliability of the F-22 Raptor is projected to save the taxpayer $14 billion, or more than 35 percent in support costs over the life of the aircraft.

"We are honored by this recognition. The government-contractor team is a strong partnership providing rapid maturation of the F-22 support system and exceptional support to the warfighter," said Dennis Haines, Lockheed Martin vice president for F-22 Sustainment.

Using a life-cycle focused strategy, the Air Force and Lockheed Martin team implemented a continuous reliability improvement program, increasing mean time between maintenance by 69 percent fleet wide. The team drove a 15 percent improved mission rate and reduced repair time by 20 percent.

A total of 183 production Raptors are currently on contract. The F-22 is built by Lockheed Martin in partnership with Boeing and Pratt & Whitney. Parts and subsystems are provided by 1,000 suppliers in 44 states. The F-22 is the only aircraft that blends supercruise speed, super-agility, stealth and sensor fusion into a single air dominance platform.

Raptors are assigned to six U.S. bases: Edwards AFB, Calif., Nellis AFB, Nev., Tyndall AFB, Fla., Langley AFB, Va., Elmendorf AFB, Alaska, and Holloman AFB, N.M. Raptors will also be based at Hickam AFB, Hawaii.

Previous PBL awards honoring Lockheed Martin activities have included the following:

-- 2005 - Lockheed Martin won the System Level Award as part of the Air Force F-117 Nighthawk total system support partnership team, for innovative contracting measures enhancing war fighter capabilities and cutting costs.

-- 2006 - Lockheed Martin won the System Level Award for the High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems program, based at the Army's Precision Fires Rocket and Missile Systems Project Management Office at Redstone Arsenal, Alabama, and Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control in Dallas.

Lockheed Martin is a major supplier of logistics systems and services to military and civil government customers. The corporation provides solutions for platform maintenance, modifications and repair, material readiness and distribution, and global supply chain command and control.

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Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor Reaches Milestone in Maturity

PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- The Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) F-22 Raptor surpassed more than 50,000 total flight hours in August while establishing new standards in capability and maturity.

"The F-22 continues to demonstrate the field performance vital to an operational weapon system," said Larry Lawson, Lockheed Martin executive vice president and F-22 general manager. "The fleet reliability measures are ahead of plan and the force-on-force exercises have shown Raptors provide the capability to dominate airspace today and in the future."

Pilots and crews at six U.S. bases achieved this maturity level. Operational, frontline Raptors are assigned to the 1st Fighter Wing at Langley AFB, Va.; the 49th Fighter Wing at Holloman AFB, N.M.; and the 3rd Wing at Elmendorf AFB, Alaska. These units maintain constant readiness supporting Air Combat and Pacific Air Force Commands.

The Air Force Flight Test Center at Edwards AFB, Calif., tests new F-22 capabilities, most recently releasing a small diameter bomb at supersonic speed for the first time. Nellis AFB, Nev., hosts two F-22 missions, operational testing and tactics development, along with Fighter Weapons School training -- the fighter pilot's "PHD" course. Pilot and crew chief training is at Tyndall AFB, Fla., with the first basic course students currently undergoing F-22 certification. Raptors will also be based at Hickam AFB, Hawaii.

The warfighter has put the Raptor to the test since reaching initial operational capability in 2005 and full operational capability in 2007. F-22s have flown in multiple Red Flag events, Northern Edge exercises, deployed to Kadena Air Base Japan, Andersen Air Force Base (AFB), Guam, and flown in the Royal International Air Tattoo and the Farnborough Air Show. In all exercises and demonstrations the Raptor's world-class capability has been clearly established.

The Raptor's stealth, integrated avionics, maneuverability and supercruise speed (1.5 times the speed of sound without afterburner) give the F-22 "first-look, first-shot, first-kill" capability.

Lockheed Martin's F-22 and F-35 aircraft deliver game changing 5th Generation capabilities designed to defeat current and future threats. Representing a quantum leap in air-to-air and air-to-ground capabilities that provide an order of magnitude increase in operational effectiveness over legacy fighters, the F-22 and F-35 will dominate any foreseeable threat environment and ensure joint and combined operational flexibility for years to come.

The F-22 Raptor is built by Lockheed Martin teamed with Boeing and Pratt & Whitney. Parts and subsystems are provided by approximately 1,000 suppliers in 44 U.S. states. Lockheed Martin has delivered 127 Raptors to the U.S. Air Force.

Headquartered in Bethesda, Md., Lockheed Martin employs about 140,000 people worldwide and is principally engaged in the research, design, development, manufacture, integration and sustainment of advanced technology systems, products and services. The Corporation reported 2007 sales of $41.9 billion.

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U.S. Navy P-3 Orions to Receive Lockheed Martin New Production Outer Wings

PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) has received a $129.3 million contract to build a total of 13 new outer wing sets for the U.S. Navy's P-3 Orion fleet. The all new production outer wings will be delivered to the Navy beginning in early 2010 for installation on selected aircraft.

"Lockheed Martin has a long, proud history of providing P-3 sustainment and support to the U.S. Navy," said Ray Burick, Lockheed Martin vice president of P-3/S-3 programs. "This new wing order is the next step in that partnership."

Lockheed Martin's P-3 wing production line opened in March 2008 and is the cornerstone of the company's P-3 Aircraft Service Life Extension Program (ASLEP). Lockheed Martin currently has the Royal Norwegian Air Force and the U.S. Customs and Border Protection Service under contract for P-3 Life Extension Kits, and has submitted a response to the Canadian Forces under a Request For Proposal. A proposal for the Taiwan P-3 fleet is also in work.

"As the P-3 Orion original equipment manufacturer, Lockheed Martin is uniquely qualified to sustain and support the world's P-3 fleets," said Burick. "Aside from the operators of these aircraft, nobody knows the P-3 better than Lockheed Martin."

The complete ASLEP solution replaces the aircraft outer wings, center wing lower section and horizontal stabilizers with new production components. All fatigue-life limiting structures on the aircraft are replaced with enhanced-design components and improved corrosion-resistant materials that will greatly reduce maintenance costs over the aircraft's service life.

"Lockheed Martin is committed to providing a range of solutions that enables operational effectiveness for P-3 Orion operators worldwide for decades to come," said Burick. "We're fully prepared to support the U.S. Navy and all our customers in their future maritime surveillance activities."

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News to Use in Fayette, Cobb, Coweta, Atlanta and all of Georgia

Man Pleads Guilty for Role in Scheme to Defraud Department of Veterans Affairs

PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The ex-boyfriend of a former Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) social work associate pleaded guilty today for his role in a scheme to defraud the United States of the associate's honest services in connection with her work finding suitable housing and daily care for mentally ill and disabled military veterans, Acting Assistant Attorney General Matthew Friedrich of the Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney David E. Nahmias of the Northern District of Georgia announced.

Darrick O. Frazier, 33, of Atlanta, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Richard W. Story in Atlanta to one count of honest services mail fraud. At sentencing, Frazier faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison, a $250,000 fine and $20,200 in restitution. A sentencing date has not been scheduled. Frazier was indicted on Nov. 14, 2006, along with his ex-girlfriend, Bridgette L. Davidson, 37, who was employed as a social work associate with the VA during the time the alleged criminal scheme occurred. A trial date for Davidson has not been set by the court.

In his guilty plea, Frazier admitted that from approximately November 2001 through March 2002, he and Davidson rented a home in Marietta, Ga., a suburb of Atlanta, to house mentally ill and disabled military veterans in Davidson's care in exchange for monthly federal subsidy payments. Frazier admitted that he and Davidson then falsely represented to VA officials and to the military veterans' legal guardians and custodians that the home was independently owned and a certified personal care home suitable to house and care for the veterans. Frazier also admitted he and Davidson used the rental income obtained from the veterans housed at the facility to pay some of the rent, utilities and related expenses on the rental property, and then kept the excess revenue for their own personal benefit. The facility was shut down in April 2002.

The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney Armando O. Bonilla of the Criminal Division's Public Integrity Section, headed by Section Chief William M. Welch II, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Teresa D. Hoyt of the Northern District of Georgia. The case is being investigated by the VA Office of Inspector General.

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Air Force awards contracts for HC/MC-130 Recapitalization to Lockheed

On June 13, 2008, Air Force officials announced the award of two contracts to Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Company-Marietta, Ga., for the procurement of six modified KC-130J aircraft, and non-recurring costs associated with modifying the KC-130J.

These capabilities are required to meet the unique mission requirements of the Air Combat Command's search and rescue and Air Force Special Operations Command's special operations forces mission areas. These awards begin the recapitalization of the Air Force's aging fleet of CSAR and SOF HC/MC-130 aircraft, which have long been in a state of low supply/high demand and are facing mounting sustainment challenges.

Athletes around the state compete in Cobb County at State Indoor Winter Games

Athletes from all over Georgia will compete in Special Olympics Georgia’s State Indoor Games this weekend.

More than 2,000 participants from all over Georgia will compete in Special Olympics State Indoor Winter Games Jan. 18-20 at various locations in Cobb County. Athletes will compete in basketball, bowling, floor hockey, ice skating, power lifting, artistic gymnastics and roller skating.

The games, which are free and open to the public, begin Friday with the Opening Ceremony at 7:30 p.m. at Cobb Civic Center in Marietta.

Competition will be Saturday and Sunday at various locations, including AMF Marietta Lanes, Brunswick Zone, Marietta Ice Center, Marietta Middle School, Marietta 6th Grade Academy Cobb County Civic Center and Velocity Sports in Roswell. The public is invited to be “Fans in the Stands” and cheer on athletes with supportive signs and posters.

Special Olympics Georgia (SOGA)
SOGA provides year-round sports training and athletic competition in a variety of Olympic-type sports for nearly 23,000 children and adults with intellectual disabilities, giving them continuing opportunities to develop physical fitness, demonstrate courage, experience joy and participate in the sharing of gifts, skills, and friendships with their families, other Special Olympics athletes and the community. For more information visit www.SpecialOlympicsGA.org.