GAO: Discord keeps military unready to
deal with chemical, biological casualties
By Sandra Jontz, Washington
bureau
ARLINGTON, Va. — The military has no idea medically how to handle casualties
following a chemical or biological attack, according to a report from the General
Accounting Office, the investigative arm of Congress.
Investigators concluded that the services can’t agree on medical plans, and for
years failed to train medical staff in chemical and biological warfare, according to the
report given Wednesday to the House Subcommittee on National Security, Veterans Affairs
and International Relations of the Committee on Government Reform.
Gaps were found in the modeling, planning, training, tracking and testing for the
treatment of such casualties, the GAO reported.
"Public assessments by defense officials have emphasized the seriousness of the
military threat from chemical and biological weapons. However, we found that neither DOD
nor the services have systematically examined the adequacy of the current specialty mix of
medical personnel for chemical and biological defense," the report reads.
The Pentagon said it is working on it.
The GAO, which examines the use of public funds, recommended that Defense Secretary
Donald H. Rumsfeld clarify the expectations for preparedness and direct the Joint Chiefs
of Staff to integrate a biological medical-readiness plan.
The Pentagon agreed.
"As the coordinating body with the services and the CINCs [commanding officers in
charge] on issues of this nature, the Joint Staff will be requested to conduct
reexamination of [chemical and biological] medical training issues and provide suggested
adjustments to enhance the DOD’s medical readiness posture," wrote Dr. J.
Jarratt Clinton, then-acting assistant secretary for health affairs, in a response to the
GAO report.
The report cites some examples of where the Pentagon and services have failed.
First, while the Pentagon aims for joint protocols for treating casualties, GAO
investigators found the services can’t agree on which health care providers are
appropriate to provide treatment, nor can they agree on certain evacuation policies.
Pentagon officials told GAO investigators the weakness in medical planning for chemical
and biological attacks stemmed from a failure to make it a medical priority.
"Joint, unified command, and service planners charged with addressing these issues
all expressed frustration with inaction on the part of others," the report reads.
GAO investigators also concluded that relatively few military health-care providers are
trained to a standard of proficiency in providing care to chemical and biological
casualties.
Although the services boosted the number of chemical- and biological-hazard training
courses after the Persian Gulf War, the courses are voluntary for servicemembers, who
sporadically attend them.
GAO investigators noted that no more than 19 percent of uniformed health services
personnel completed any specialized training for chemical and biological warfare.
"Even the individuals who have been trained cannot be readily identified in the
event of an emergency, because either the tracking systems do not exist or they are not
currently functioning," the report states.
The report can be found at: www.gao.gov/new.items/d0238.pdf
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