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Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin‘s secret hospitalizations “unnecessarily” increased the national security risk of the United States, according to a new report from the Department of Defense’s Office of the Inspector General (OIG).
The Pentagon The watchdog’s scathing 188-page review looks at the secretary’s hospitalizations in December 2023, January 2024 and February 2024 and blames Austin’s team for miscommunication and mistakes in transferring authority
The OIG noted that Austin’s “strong desire for privacy about his medical condition” played a major role in disrupting communications within the Pentagon, as well as between the Defense Department and the White House and the congress
Neither Austin’s chief of staff nor Assistant Secretary of Defense Kathleen Hicks knew of his cancer diagnosis or the procedure he underwent in December 2023. In fact, the OIG notes that “almost all of his staff” was unaware of Austin’s medical condition and treatments.
Dr. MARC SIEGEL: PATIENT PRIVACY DOESN’T COVER LLOYD AUSTIN’S SECRET HOSPITALIZATION
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin pauses as he speaks during a media briefing at the Pentagon on November 17, 2021 in Washington, DC (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
The evidence also allegedly indicates that on January 1, 2024, when he was taken to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center for “severe” pain, Austin asked the ambulance not to use its lights or sirens. Also, according to the report, Austin told his personal security officer not to tell anyone about the incident.
“No one on Secretary Austin’s staff knew the severity of his condition, including when his condition worsened and he was transferred to the Surgical Intensive Care Unit on January 2,” the OIG noted in its report.
On January 3, 2024, Austin’s chief of staff, Kelly Magsamen, sent a text message to the secretary’s junior military assistant, who was at the hospital with the secretary at the time. In his message, Magsamen urged the secretary to be more honest about her condition.
“I wish (Secretary Austin) was a normal person, but he is the (Secretary of Defense). We have a huge institutional responsibility. He can’t go completely dark with his staff. . . . Please stop -him that we cannot keep his hospitalization a secret forever. It is very important that he is in the (SICU) and I am sick,” Magsamen wrote, according to the OIG report.
U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin testifies before a House Armed Services Committee hearing on his failure to disclose his cancer diagnosis and subsequent hospitalizations on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, on February 29, 2024. (Reuters/Evelyn Hockstein)
The OIG also found that on February 11, 2024, when Austin was unexpectedly hospitalized again, his authorities were not transferred “until several hours later.” Referring to this incident, the OIG noted that “given the seriousness of his condition,” authorities in Austin should have been moved “hours before what ultimately occurred.”
After its review, the OIG gave the DOD 20 recommendations to “improve processes” and advised the department to act quickly.
PENTAGON RELEASES SUMMARY OF AUSTIN HOSPITAL REVIEW
Inspector General Robert Storch said in a statement that “while DoD has taken some important steps to address these concerns, additional improvements are needed to ensure DoD’s readiness, transparency, and fulfillment of its mission. These improvements do not they are only an administrative necessity; they are an operational and national security imperative.”
Finally, the report found that the Department of Defense did not have a “comprehensive” plan for the transfer of duties in the absence of the secretary.
After the report was released, a senior defense official admitted to reporters that Austin “made a mistake,” insisting there was “no scandal” and “no cover-up.” The official also noted that “at any time, the secretary of defense or the deputy secretary of defense was fully prepared to support the president.”
Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin testifies during a House Armed Services Committee hearing about his recent hospitalization and communication issues with President Biden at the Rayburn Building on February 29, 2024. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)
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Austin acknowledged his office’s shortcomings at a press conference in February 2024 shortly after the hospitalizations became public.
“I want to be very clear. We didn’t handle that right, and I didn’t handle that right.” Austin said at the time regarding his previous hospitalization. “I should have told the president about my cancer diagnosis. I should have told my team and the American public as well, and I take full responsibility for that. I apologize to my colleagues and the American people- American”.
Liz Friden contributed to this report.
