A Washington Post expose found squalid conditions in a building that houses outpatients at Walter Reed Army Medical Center

National Review, March 19, 2007

A Washington Post expose found squalid conditions in a building that houses outpatients at Walter Reed Army Medical Center. Embarrassed Army officials dispatched construction crews to remove mold, patch ceiling holes, and repair elevators. The Pentagon then resorted to the first refuge of derelict leaders: appointing an independent panel to investigate.

The conclusion it can be expected to reach is that Army leadership has failed its wounded warriors by not vigorously overseeing their care. Walter Reed's medical staff is talented and dedicated, but its dysfunctional bureaucracy is plagued by lost files, excessive paperwork, and long delays in determinations on service discharges and disability status. Army secretary Francis Harvey says he is surprised and disappointed by the "inexcusable" treatment of wounded soldiers. What is really inexcusable is that he needed a newspaper to tell him about it.