Chairman Visclosky Statement at Defense Health Programs Budget Hearing
Congressman Pete Visclosky (IN-01), Chair of the Defense Appropriations Subcommittee, delivered the following remarks at the Subcommittee's budget hearing on Defense Health Programs:
This afternoon the Subcommittee will receive testimony on the Defense Health Program and military health system.
We welcome six witnesses:
Lieutenant General Nadja Y. West, Surgeon General of the Army; Vice Admiral Forrest C. Faison III, Surgeon General of the Navy; Lieutenant General Dorothy A. Hogg, Surgeon General of the Air Force; Mr. Thomas McCaffery, Principal Deputy, Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs; Vice Admiral Raquel Bono, Director, Defense Health Agency; and Ms. Stacy Cummings, Program Executive Officer, Defense Healthcare Management Systems.
Having a panel of six witnesses is unusual for our hearings. However, each of you has a unique vantage point and responsibility in implementing the significant reorganization that is underway within the Department of Defense’s health enterprise.
We intend to have a look at how these changes are impacting the spectrum of the military health system, from medical readiness to beneficiary care, and how those changes are reflected in the fiscal year 2020 budget submission.
I am particularly interested in an update on the defense health budget as it relates to:
The reductions to the Services’ medical corps; what the future of care looks like for our servicemembers and their families; and an update on the electronic health record system – MHS GENESIS.
We look forward to hearing about these topics and more.
With that, I thank you again for appearing before the Committee today to discuss these issues.
Now I want to recognize our distinguished ranking member, Mr. Calvert for his comments.