A vote to keep Walter Reed open ( ! )

[babylonsister]

http://www.latimes.com/features/health/medicine/la-na-briefs16.1mar16,1,3548342.story?coll=la-health-medicine&ctrack=1&cset=true

A vote to keep Walter Reed open
From Times Wire Reports
March 16, 2007

The House Appropriations Committee unanimously approved a measure that barred the closure of Walter Reed Army Medical Center, an action that supporters said would reverse plans to shut the hospital in 2011.

Walter Reed was selected in 2005 to be closed by the Department of Defense Base Realignment and Closure Commission. The recommendation, which Congress approved and President Bush signed into law, calls for the Army hospital to be consolidated with the National Naval Medical Center.

Removing a base that has been chosen for closure would be unprecedented. But revelations about problems with the long-term care of wounded soldiers at Walter Reed have sparked calls in Congress and elsewhere to reverse the decision.

[Captain Hilts]

1. There just isn't room at Bethesda Naval. NOT a good idea. nt

[babylonsister]

2. Why isn't this a good idea? Please explain. nt

[Captain Hilts]

3. glad you asked!

Military medicine is one of those areas where there already is a lot of cooperation among the services. For example, if you're studying malaria, you're working for the army. If you're studying pressurization-related illnesses, you're working with the navy,etc. You always see folks from all services at both facilities.

While there is spare space at Bethesda Naval, there just isn't enough room for the whole Walter Reed facility. Bethesda Naval is directly across Wisconsin Ave./Rockville Pike from NIH. They are a half mile - if that - north of downtown Bethesda. Bethesda is a traffic nightmare. As so many of the military medical personnel live out in Gaithersburg and Germantown, a great many have to drive to work. Combine this increased parking demand with that of the Walter Reed patients and there isn't room for all the additional parking needs.

There has been talk of avoiding contributing to Bethesda's congestion by building a separate Capital Beltway off ramp just for Bethesda Naval. No one's sure which neighborhoods would have to be mowed down for that.

They're both huge facilities and combining them would not improve the economies of scale at all.

[babylonsister]

4. This article is not about combining them, but leaving Walter Reed

as a separate entity instead of phasing it out.

[Captain Hilts]

5. Leaving Walter Reed as is, is a good idea. nt