Updated at 12:20 p.m., Wednesday, March 7, 2007
Inouye says wounded need 'our complete attention'
Washington Post
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WASHINGTON — Sen. Daniel Inouye said today that treatment of the nation's war wounded "now requires our complete attention and scrutiny."
"It is not just a matter of medical care," said Inouye, who lost an arm during combat in World War II. "We must recognize the changing implications of our service members' surviving life-threatening injuries and the fact that many of them have the utmost desire to return to active duty."
Inouye chairs the defense subcommittee of the Senate Appropriations Committee, which held a hearing today on military medical programs.
Reports of substandard housing for some wounded soldiers at Walter Reed "have shed light on a massive failure which I believe is inexcusable on every level," Sen. Richard Shelby, R-Ala., said at the hearing. "Yet what is perhaps more disturbing is this problem is likely not an isolated incident. ... The problem clearly goes deep beyond the facilities at Walter Reed."
He said lawmakers are "not looking for scapegoats, but we're looking for responsibility and we're looking to correction, because we owe it to our soldiers."
Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., cited reports of maltreatment of wounded veterans in her home state and said she holds Lt. Gen. Kevin Kiley, the Army surgeon general and a former Walter Reed commander, "accountable for every disturbing story I'm hearing." She also demanded his personal assurance that soldiers who blow the whistle on substandard care will not face retaliation.
Kiley, appearing before the panel after having testified before other congressional committees Monday and Tuesday, reiterated his apologies for the situation at Walter Reed and said Building 18, which formerly housed nearly 80 wounded soldiers, has been emptied.
"We're taking steps to improve responsiveness of our leaders and our medical system and to enhance support services for families of our wounded warriors," he told the subcommittee. "We're taking action to put in place longer-term solutions for the very complex and bureaucratic medical evaluation process that in fact does impact on our soldiers."
Kiley also hailed the role and sacrifices of Army medics in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, noting that 101 of them have been killed to date. In addition, he said, "Army medics have earned over 220 awards for valor and more than 400 Purple Hearts."
