Army begins scaling back wounded-soldier recovery system built during post-9/11 wars

The Army recently took the first step in scaling back a recovery system built during the U.S. wars in Iraq and Afghanistan to care for seriously wounded and injured soldiers, inactivating a Kansas-based unit formed two decades ago. 

The casing of the soldier recovery unit’s colors at Fort Riley on Friday marks the first deactivation under a larger overhaul that will reduce the number of such units from 14 to five, even as new combat casualties mount in the U.S. war against Iran.

The overhaul was announced in December, months before the start of Operation Epic Fury, which has resulted in nearly 700 combat-related injuries and 18 deaths among U.S. troops.

Soldiers account for the largest share of the wounded, according to recent Pentagon data. 

The cadre at Fort Riley was originally established as a warrior transition unit in 2007 alongside others across the nation, according to an Army statement Monday. 

Lt. Col. Benjamin Peffer, commander of the soldier recovery unit at Fort Riley in Kansas, and Command Sgt. Maj. Ryan Johnson furl the unit’s colors during an inactivation ceremony Aug. 14, 2026. The unit provided recovery and transition support to wounded, ill and injured service members across a seven-state region for nearly two decades. (U.S. Army)

Lt. Col. Benjamin Peffer, commander of the soldier recovery unit at Fort Riley, Kan., addresses attendees during the unit’s inactivation ceremony Aug. 14, 2026. The unit is the first of its kind in the Army to deactivate. (U.S. Army)

Col. Jason Marquart, commander of Irwin Army Community Hospital, returns the soldier recovery unit’s colors to 1st Sgt. Bud Morgan during an inactivation ceremony at Fort Riley, Kan., Aug. 14, 2026. (U.S. Army)

At the height of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, the units provided administrative and transitional care to soldiers recovering from serious combat injuries as well as to those with other injuries and illnesses. 

The one at Fort Riley had “stood as a beacon of hope, healing and transition,” unit commander Lt. Col. Benjamin Peffer said.

Fort Riley’s unit is expected to fully deactivate by Oct. 1, with others transitioning or deactivating in 2027, according to the service. 

Since the program’s inception, more than 91,900 soldiers have received recovery care services through the units and similar programs, according to an official Army website. 

As the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan wound down, however, so did the number of soldiers requiring the intensive level of care the units were designed to provide.

By last year, that number had decreased by more than 90% from its peak in 2008, prompting the Army to reassess the size of its recovery program, an Army statement last year said.

Under the new structure, five soldier recovery units will remain across the country to manage the recovery of wounded, ill and injured soldiers requiring complex care.

The Army will also transition five others into definitive care units — located at bases such as Fort Belvoir, Va.; Schofield Barracks, Hawaii; and Fort Bliss, Texas — to treat wounded, ill and injured troops whose conditions do not require complex care. 

The Army Recovery Care Program will continue to oversee both types of units and provide resources and advocacy for recovering soldiers, their families and caregivers.

The restructuring, however, was developed before the latest increase in combat casualties. It is not clear how the smaller system will accommodate soldiers requiring complex recovery care as a result of current or future conflicts. 

The Army Medical Command Director of Public Affairs did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the matter.

Pentagon officials have said that the majority of U.S. troops wounded during the Iran war had traumatic brain injuries and that most have returned to duty.

However, research has shown that brain injuries can have long-term effects and remain difficult to diagnose and treat.