Dean: Bush Administration Played Politics With Troops' Care
After news reports exposed the deplorable conditions at the outpatient facilities at Walter Reed Army Hospital, it has been further revealed that a number of services for our veterans were privatized, leading to serious problems at the hospital. According to a letter written by Rep. Henry Waxman, Walter Reed awarded a five-year, $120-million contract to IAP Worldwide Services, a company criticized for failing to properly execute a contract to deliver ice to areas devastated by Hurricane Katrina. The company is also run by former Halliburton official Al Neffgen who defended the company's gas price gouging in Iraq in testimony before Congress.
The IAP contract led to an "exodus of 'highly skilled and experienced personnel'" according to information cited in Waxman's letter. [Army Times, 3/3/07] And what once was a staff of 300 government employees was whittled down to only 50 private workers employed for support services at Walter Reed. These revelations come after years of underfunding and neglect of the Veterans Administration by Washington Republicans.
Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean issued the following statement:
"It's an unconscionable disgrace that after serving so bravely in Iraq our troops would be subjected to these abysmal conditions and treated so callously when they needed care. The President's stubborn commitment to a failed strategy in Iraq has sent troops into battle without proper lifesaving equipment or training, and the incompetent mismanagement has put their lives and well being at risk when they come home. The Administration's outsourcing agenda has disgracefully put politics ahead of quality care for our troops and veterans. Democrats are committed to getting to the bottom of this tragedy and will make sure our troops have every resource available from deployment to when they return.”
Privatization Resulted In Understaffed Walter Reed
House Committee to Review Claims By Walter Reed Commander. According to a letter by Rep. Henry Waxman, A memorandum from Walter Reed Commander Peter Gabraldi "describes how the Army's decision to privatize support services at Walter Reed Army Medical Center was causing an exodus of 'highly skilled and experienced personnel . As a result, according to the memorandum, 'WRAMC Base Operations and patient care services are at risk of mission failure.'" [Letter By Rep. Waxman to Maj. Gen. George Weightman, 3/2/2007]
IAP Privatization Resulted in Loss of Experienced Personnel Who Were Not Replaced. "We have learned that in January 2006, Walter Reed awarded a five-year $120 million contract to a company called IAP Worldwide Services for base operations support services, including facilities management," Waxman continues. "IAP is one of the companies that experienced problems delivering ice during the response to Hurricane Katrina." . Before the contract, over 300 federal employees provided facilities management services at Walter Reed, according to the memorandum, but that number dropped to less than 60 the day before IAP took over. "Yet instead of hiring additional personnel, IAP apparently replaced the remaining 60 federal employees with only 50 IAP personnel," Waxman writes. [Letter By Rep. Waxman to Maj. Gen. George Weightman, 3/2/2007]
Army was Warned of Problems at Walter Reed but Denied Staffing Requests. The memo signed by [Garrison Commander Peter] Garibaldi requests more federal employees because the hospital mission had grown "significantly" during the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. It states that medical command did not concur with their request for more people. "Without favorable consideration of these requests," Garibaldi wrote, "[Walter Reed Army Medical Center] Base Operations and patient care services are at risk of mission failure." [Army Times, 3/3/2007]
IAP's Previous Record Of Failure
IAP Involved in Katrina Ice Fiasco. Separately, the Pentagon's inspector general is auditing an Army Corps of Engineers contract used to provide ice after Hurricane Katrina and is examining another to install temporary roofs on homes after the disaster. The ice contract with IAP Worldwide Services Inc., based in Cape Canaveral, Fla., came under scrutiny after reports emerged that the Corps of Engineers ordered twice as much ice as it needed in the days after the disaster. Millions of pounds of ice were sent to storage, some as far away as Maine. [Washington Post, 11/17/2005]
IAP Run by Former Halliburton Executives. IAP, which is based in Cape Canaveral, Fla., has more than $1 billion a year in revenue and more than 5,000 employees around the world, according to the company's Web site. It is owned by Cerberus Capital Management LP, a private asset management firm. The firm has grown exponentially in recent years in part because of contracts in Afghanistan and Iraq. It recently recruited high-ranking Halliburton Co. official Al Neffgen to be its chief executive. IAP's President is Dave Swindle. Prior to IAP, Swindle was Vice President, Business Acquisition and National Security Programs and an Officer for Kellogg Brown and Root. In this capacity, he was responsible for the Government and Infrastructure Division's Business Development Operations for KBR Americas, Asia-Pacific, Europe-Africa, and the Middle East. [IAP Website, Accessed 3/5/2007; Washington Post, 10/20/2005]
IAS Chief Executive Defended Iraq Gas Price Gouging. According to Rep. Waxman's Letter, IAS "is led by Al Neffgen, a former senior Halliburton official who testified before our Committee in July 2004 in defense of Halliburton's exorbitant charges for fuel delivery and troop support in Iraq." [Waxman Letter to Maj. Gen. George Weightman, 3/2/2007
