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Politics

Scandal sires bureaucracy

Will reams of task forces help injured troops?

By ANITA KUMAR
Published April 6, 2007

WASHINGTON - The biggest problem at the aging Walter Reed Army Medical Center isn't the moldy walls or rat infestation. It's the redundant paperwork and months of waiting.

In a word: bureaucracy.

So how did Washington respond when the poor treatment of injured soldiers was recently exposed?

With more bureaucracy.

There are no less than nine blue-ribbon committees, task forces and review groups investigating soldiers' medical care, some of them with overlapping missions.

"Every time I turn around there is a new committee," said William Bradshaw, national veterans service director for the Veterans of Foreign Wars. "That's just overkill. Everyone is piling on."

There's the President's Commission on Care for America's Returning Wounded Warriors, looking into military health care facilities across the nation. Not to be confused with the Cabinet-level Task Force on Returning Global War on Terror Heroes, examining the needs of soldiers injured in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Then there's the Independent Review Group and the Criminal Investigation Command, both created by the Pentagon. And don't forget the somewhat secretive internal military inquiries that the Army will release little information about: a pair of "Tiger Teams" to examine outpatient medical care and another pair of "AR 15-6 investigations" into the chain of command and medical care.

Lastly, there's a "Lean Six Sigma" review. Tiger Teams and 15-6 investigations are military jargon for internal investigations. Lean Six Sigma is a performance review used in the business world to improve speed and quality of service.

"To me, giving more bureaucrats (authority) to solve a problem of bureaucracy is just going to hurt our soldiers' treatment opportunities even more," Rep. Jack Kingston, R-Ga., said at a recent congressional hearing into Walter Reed.

That hasn't stopped Congress from getting in the act.

In recent weeks, the following committees have held hearings: Senate Appropriations and House Appropriations. Senate Armed Services and House Armed Services. House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform and Senate Veterans Affairs.

Even before the Walter Reed stories broke, the Army's inspector general was looking into the medical care of wounded soldiers. And Congress had already called for a commission to review veterans' disability benefits.

Soldiers at Walter Reed and other facilities around the nation have complained about the long months they spend waiting for the military to make decisions about their health care and, in turn, their future.

Gen. Peter Schoomaker, the Army's chief of staff, recently acknowledged to lawmakers that the military suffers from "a bureaucratic morass."

In the days after the Walter Reed stories broke in February, the White House, the Pentagon and Congress quickly sprung into action.

President Bush selected former Sen. Bob Dole and former Cabinet secretary Donna Shalala to led the most high-profile inquiry. (They have a mandate from the president, but none of Congress' subpoena powers.)

"There will be no excuses, only action," Vice President Dick Cheney said after the group formed. "And the federal bureaucracy will not slow that action down."

Despite that tough talk, some were quick to criticize the government's response. They argue that the groups' missions are too close, and that they are demanding answers and documents from the same people. Others worry that the findings will be ignored.

"We need decisive action, not commission after commission and report after report that the president can choose to ignore," said Sen. Patty Murray, a Washington Democrat.

It wouldn't be the first time that has happened.

Three years ago, the Army investigated complaints that hundreds of soldiers faced inadequate medical treatment and bureaucratic delays at Fort Stewart in Georgia.

The headline-grabbing problems prompted a set of commissions, task forces and review groups.

"The reports have never seen the light of day. They're sitting there, collecting dust," said David Gorman, executive director of Disabled American Veterans. "I don't know if it's really going to help (this time) or not. Past experience and history have made a pessimist out of me. But you have to hold out hope."

Times researcher Angie Drobnic Holan contributed to this report. Anita Kumar can be reached at akumar@sptimes.com or (202) 463-0576.

Fast Facts:

Committee after committee

Investigations stemming from the scandal at Walter Reed Army Medical Center:

The President's Commission on Care for America's Returning Wounded Warriors

Led by: Bob Dole, former U.S. senator and presidential candidate, and Donna Shalala, University of Miami president and former Cabinet secretary.

Members: Nine (bipartisan)

Appointed by: President Bush

Date Formed: March 6

Timetable: Report due June 30

Objective: Examine the care troops receive throughout the military's health care system at Departments of Defense and Veterans Affairs.

Cabinet-level Task Force on Returning Global War on Terror Heroes

Led by: Secretary of Veterans Affairs Jim Nicholson

Members: Seven Bush Cabinet members

Appointed by: President Bush

Date formed: March 6

Timetable: Report due within 45 days

Objective: Examine the care of troops returning from combat in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Independent Review Group

Led by: Togo West, former Veterans Affairs secretary, and former Army Secretary Jack Marsh

Members: Six (bipartisan)

Appointed by: Defense Secretary Robert Gates

Date formed: Feb. 23

Timetable: Report due within 45 days.

Objective: Examine the outpatient conditions at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington and the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Md.

Internal military investigations that the Defense Department and Army will not share information about:

- An inquiry conducted by the Criminal Investigative Command, the Army's primary criminal investigative organization.

- Two Army military "Tiger Teams" to examine outpatient medical care at Army facilities and eight community-based health care organizations where Reservists recover. Personnel from the Army Medical Command and Installation Management Command personnel must report back within 30 days.

- Two formal "AR 15-6" procedures (a form of Army investigation) into the chain of command and into the quality of care as shown through medical records, appointments, etc.

- A "Lean Six Sigma" examination (another form of Army investigation).

Source: Times research, White House, Department of Defense, U.S. Army

[Last modified April 5, 2007, 22:47:50]