Increased access to fertility treatment has been brought to the forefront, with even the White House now announcing that it has conducted negotiations to bring the price of IVF down. However, there's a segment of the population that may need even more help getting the care they need, military families. We're now joined by Dr. Michael Wittenberger, a reproductive endocrinologist and Navy veteran with a lot of experience in treating veterans and military families.

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Federal employees are experiencing disruptions in the workplace at a rate nearly three times the national average. Close to one-third of federal employees say their workplace has been disrupted to a very large extent this year, according to new data from Gallup. For more on the latest findings, Federal News Network's Drew Friedman spoke with a Gallup director and Senior Consultant, Camille Lloyd.

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Federal employee unions are suing the Trump administration for including a new essay question on most job applications. One of the questions asks candidates how they plan to advance the Trump administration's priorities. Plaintiffs in the lawsuit say that amounts to a loyalty test for the nonpartisan civil service Federal News Network's Jory Heckman is here with more details. 

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Today on the Federal Drive with Terry Gerton

• The shutdown creates an employment law minefield for federal contractors
• Open Season starts today, and feds face rising premiums and tough choices on coverage
• Signs of movement in shutdown negotiations on the Hill

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Last week's signs of movement seem to have hit a stop sign over the weekend. The House remains in recess. Regardless of the impacts on air travel, SNAP benefits, and military pay, Senate Democrats are holding firm on their demands, and Republicans are equally resolute in their positions, Here with more details on the shutdown negotiations is Maeve Sheehey, congressional reporter with Bloomberg Government.

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As the shutdown stretches on, federal contractors face growing wage and hour risks, from delayed payments to potential violations of labor law. Employers trying to do the right thing may still stumble into legal trouble. Here to explain how contractors can protect themselves and what organizations should be doing to stay compliant is Co-Chair of the Employment + Labor Practice at Morrison and Foerster, Andrew Turnbull.

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Open Season kicks off today. Federal employees and retirees are facing another round of double-digit premium hikes, shifting plan defaults, and new coverage options. Here to explain what’s changing and how to avoid paying for coverage you don’t need is John Hatton from NARFE.

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Like the other military services, the Army has now recovered from the recruiting challenges it faced over the last several years. But even during the peak of those problems, a bright spot was that retention stayed strong. Now the Army is trying to capitalize on that strength by thinking more carefully about which soldiers it keeps and where. As Federal News Network's Jared Serbu reports, the Service wants to retain its soldiers in the fields where they're most needed, focus its retention efforts more on officers and put an emphasis on quality over quantity.

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The decision by the Federal Aviation Administration to reduce air traffic by 10% across 40 high volume markets beginning this morning, isn't just a reaction to the now longest partial government shutdown ever. FAA is seeing the strain on air traffic controllers who are starting to call out sick more often. A new Federal News Network pulse poll finds FAA employees aren't the only ones working without pay that may be calling out sick or taking part in a sick out if this shutdown continues deep into November. Federal News Network's executive editor Jason Miller joins me now to discuss what we found in our latest survey. 

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One of the first major cuts from the Department of Government Efficiency hit the U.S. Agency for International Development. About 85% of its programs were eliminated, and the rest, including emergency food aid, were folded into the State Department. That food aid program has long had bipartisan support, but the transition hasn’t been seamless. Federal News Network's Eric White recently spoke with Vincent Smith from the American Enterprise Institute to explore the program's growing pains.

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