Military Construction Subcommittee of the House Appropriations Committee - Quality of Life Program Appropriations - Part 2
REP. KNOLLENBERG: Can I just ask a quick question? You mentioned home schooling. Now, what percentage are home schooled?
MR. SCOTT: It changes base to base, location to location.
REP. KNOLLENBERG: Is it documented? Do you have any --
MR. SCOTT: No, that I don't. And it's one of the things-concerns that I'd like to look into, that I think that we need to and look at our military and see how many are home schooled and why those choices are.
REP. BISHOP: Let me turn to another area quickly that I want to follow up with the spouses when they come. We're hearing lots of stories that parents and spouses of service members are sacrificing to chip in to buy their sons, wives, daughters and husbands extra equipment in preparation for deployment to Iraq or Afghanistan; most recently the Interceptor body armor. Have you heard of that?
Do you-has that been common? I mean, we of course read about it in the paper and we heard a great deal of it three or four months ago. Now we understand that about 93 percent of personnel in theater have the body armor, so of course that leaves 7 percent that don't. And the question will be who of the 7 percent will be covered and have socks and other amenities. I understand that in the warm weather sanitary napkins were being used as sweatbands because of the heat?
MR. PRESTON: Most of that I think comes to me. But for the Interceptor-I mean, all the soldiers in theater right now have body armor and all the soldiers going in are getting the body armor, the Interceptor body armor plus SAPI plates. In fact, right now in Kuwait there's a 30,000 OTV, outer tactical vest, stockpile. So there's plenty there in theater now to ensure that all soldiers and their units as they rotate in the theater get issued that equipment. In fact, they're now starting to go to the MOPE (ph) sites back here in the States to preposition a lot of that equipment now at the MOPE sites. So the body armor, I think we've caught everybody up on that, sir. Everybody is current.
The other piece you talked about was kind of the stuff that we're issuing now through the Rapid Fielding Initiative, the RFI. In all three of the enhanced separate brigades, the 30th, the 39th and the 81st are all getting the new additional equipment that goes to each of the soldiers, which includes the new Kevlar helmets, the kneepads, all those different amenities for them now before they're even being deployed over there.
REP. BISHOP: And that includes the Reserves and the National Guard?
MR. PRESTON: Oh, absolutely. That is the National Guard, all three of those brigades. I think if I could, sir, one thing-and you also mentioned from a historical perspective the problems with soldiers buying things. You know, that may have been tied also to when-you know, when you're the first unit going into a theater to set up, you know, it's always tough to get things established and, you know, until you get the supply lines established -- (off mike) -- gets in there and gets established and doing normal exchange kind of process. So that's probably tied to stuff that occurred back during the summer months when --
REP. BISHOP: Yeah, yeah, yeah.
MR. PRESTON: -- (cross talk) -- initially going into theater.
REP. BISHOP: There's been a lot of that.
REP. KNOLLENBERG: We've been joined by Mr. Goode from Virginia.
You're recognized if you have a question.
REP. VIRGIL H. GOODE (I-VA): Mr. Chairman, I appreciate all you're doing in connection with these hearings and appreciate all our branches being here. I would like to follow up on something Congressman Bishop brings. You said I believe, Sergeant, that all troops in Iraq and Kuwait have body armor now. Correct? Do they have the best body armor?
MR. PRESTON: That's correct, the outer tactical vest with the SAPI plates.
REP. GOODE: Okay, because last year-and I guess this was in the summer, and this was a Reserve unit from Virginia-the family members-he-the soldier had the equivalent-he-you know, I called up and said "They don't have a vest." And I was-"Oh, yes, they do." And then I had to call back through his wife and she said, "Well, they had flak jackets but they didn't have the vest." Now, everyone has the top of the line armor now. Is that --
MR. PRESTON: That's correct.
REP. GOODE: And that's in Afghanistan, Iraq and Kuwait?
MR. PRESTON: That's correct.
REP. GOODE: Let me ask you this, and this was another situation involving a family from my area within the last two weeks. They sent a care package, and I-off the top of my head I don't remember all of the items in it, but I think one was a DVD player. Never got the items. And someone with the Postal Service told them-said, "Well, there's a hot black market for those type of items and you will be lucky if any of it ever gets through." And that-whether that statement should have been made, I-what are you-what's being done in Iraq to help ensure that the things that come from the family members to our soldiers in the field get through?
MR. PRESTON: Postal operations was something I dealt with quite a bit last year, and we've actually improved the system quite a lot over the last year. I mean, initially for all the mail coming in, it had to be trucked in. There was a problem initially with the backlog of mail because there wasn't sufficient trucks to haul the mail along with all the logistics items, you know, the bullets, the class one water was a big one. So there was a backlog initially of mail that was held in Kuwait and that was back in the early days, kind of April/May timeframe of last summer.
But since then we have now opened it up where the mail is flown in to Balad, Camp Anaconda, and there's a postal detachment up there so it comes from Kuwait where it comes into the postal center there, it's flown into Iraq and it gets broken down and then it's distributed out to the major base camps, where a postal company then breaks it down. The units come there and pick up the mail and then take it back to distribute to the soldiers.
REP. GOODE: The breakdown, according to what they told me, was at the place in Kuwait, the-and I guess this is where it was still with the U.S. Postal Service and hadn't hit you yet. I don't know, but that was what these persons were told. They said, "Well, a lot of stuff gets lost by"-anyway, do you have any suggestions that we could tell our family members, our --
MR. PRESTON: Well, that mail-I mean, if that didn't get through then, you know, there is a way to go back through and do an inquiry and check on it to see if something in that item was lost. I mean, they've got items down there if a package breaks open. They've been really good about repackaging it, putting it in another container so that it still gets to the soldier at the other end. But if they have a lost and found kind of-you know, something-a box comes open and something falls out, I mean, there's a way probably to do an inquiry. But the soldiers that handle the mail are held to the same federal postal regulations as, you know, federal postal employees back here and tampering with the mail and stealing things out of a box is a federal offense.
REP. GOODE: Is there anyone at the center there in Kuwait that's non-military or non-U.S. Postal?
MR. PRESTON: Most of the postal workers in Kuwait are civilian. You know, you won't see a lot of the military --
REP. GOODE: Are they United States citizens or are they Kuwaitis?
MR. PRESTON: There's probably a mixture of both. There's probably some third country nationals that are --
REP. GOODE: This is where the-that's where they were focusing. This is what this family was told, and I wished I'd brought the letter with me. Anyway, that's where they felt that the breakdown was. It wasn't over in Iraq. They thought anything negatively happening to the mail was at that center.
MR. PRESTON: There is-I mean, there's soldiers and there's civilians that work there. Most of the civilians are in a lot of cases para-military Americans that have gone over there to work, who do over watch. So I mean if mail is transported by truck from, you know, where it's broken down to an aircraft to be flown in, there may be a third country national that actually drives the truck or something along those lines. But mail is something that's very sacred and handled very closely.
REP. GOODE: But at the center there in Kuwait there are more than-there are others besides U.S. soldiers and U.S. Postal Service persons there. Is that --
MR. PRESTON: This is the first I've heard of an issue concerning items like that being stolen here. Opened and --
REP. GOODE: Well, I-and, you know, that was their belief. I'm not saying that they were. That's what-but somebody told them at the Postal Service that they suspected that's what happened, and I don't know what that should have been --
REP. KNOLLENBERG: If there was some way that he were to pursue-if Congressman Goode would like to pursue this, is there any suggestion you would have? And by the way, if you don't have one today --
MR. PRESTON: I can come back and --
REP. KNOLLENBERG: -- (cross talk) -- get back to us.
MR. PRESTON: I mean, I just --
REP. KNOLLENBERG: Is that appropriate?
REP. GOODE: Yeah, that's fine. That would be fine.
MR. PRESTON: And I think-you know, Command Sergeant Major Sparks (ph) is the CFLIC (ph) sergeant major there with 3rd Army and I'll ask him to take a look at it, the postal operations and the concern you just raised.
REP. GOODE: Good.
REP. KNOLLENBERG: I want to go back to the armored thing. Is there sufficient armor for these vests? The vest is one thing, but the armor that goes-that accompanies the vest is in short supply. Is there sufficient armor?
MR. PRESTON: Yes, sir. We've now got it up to where-you know, we've actually got a stockpile in theater. So all the soldiers now as they arrive in Kuwait, if they have not already been issued the outer tactical vest with the SAPI plates-you know, they're issued the SAPI plates then at that time.
REP. KNOLLENBERG: (Off mike.) I forget what you call it?
MR. PRESTON: Up-Armor.
REP. KNOLLENBERG: Up-Armor, yeah. What about -- (off mike.)
MR. PRESTON: Well, right now we're at-there's 2,109 Up-Armor Humvees as of 24 February out of a requirement of 4,149. So we are-and that's the M-1114s, the Up-Armor Humvee. Now, the Up-Armored kits that are being added to the non-Up-Armored Humvees, there's 917 right now that are installed and the objective is 6,310. So we're about 1,000 right now out of 6,000 requirement for putting armor on Humvees.
REP. KNOLLENBERG: You're about 15 percent of the way, is that what you're saying?
MR. PRESTON: Yes, sir, about 15 percent. Now, there's a lot of Humvees over there that units on their own initiative have added armor over the course of the summer months and up through December. You know, soldiers over there out of their own initiative have done, you know, a lot of their own modifications.
REP. KNOLLENBERG: One of the things we haven't talked about I don't believe today is the quality of the military medical program, and specifically with respect to-well, to TRICARE, but what I wanted to focus on is the spouses and families that are back here, or wherever they might be around the globe. What kind of treatment do they get when the spouses-or when a member is deployed? Do they get the same kind of services that are available to the service members themselves? And does it-is there anything you can tell us about the quality of the kind of services provided --
MR. PRESTON: I think --
REP. KNOLLENBERG: -- in overseas situations?
MR. PRESTON: I think for the TRICARE portion of it, TRICARE has actually come a long way in the last several years. And when you talk to families now, and particularly when you get a chance to talk to the spouses, they'll tell you a lot of good news stories about the streamlining of TRICARE that's made it easier to get in and get treatment.
REP. KNOLLENBERG: That used to be a problem.
MR. PRESTON: It used to be a problem.
REP. KNOLLENBERG: Access and --
MR. PRESTON: Yes, sir.
REP. KNOLLENBERG: sufficiency.
MR. PRESTON: The problem was tied to the military hospitals. If they were overbooked, overcrowded, they weren't able to get in to get an appointment. But with the TRICARE system now they get sponsored off the installation to doctors in the local area. So right now TRICARE and the streamlining that's gone through is a good news story.
You know, for the Guard and Reserve, I mean they're also entitled to TRICARE. And you'll hear different-varying degrees of satisfaction with the program. In some cases if you work for an employer where the employer is paying as much as $750 a month for your family healthcare, when you mobilize and you go off to a deployment that doctor that you were seeing may not necessarily be part of the TRICARE system so you may have to leave a hometown doctor that you've been seeing for the last 20 years to tie in with another healthcare professional somewhere else. So that's probably one of the biggest issues right now with TRICARE and the Reserve and National Guard.
REP. KNOLLENBERG: What significant difference is there between CONUS service and that overseas? What are the differences, and I presume there are some?
MR. PRESTON: Well, it's actually-it's improved. You get more-it's more benefits overseas. Dental, for example, for children is free. I mean, dental care is done automatically, sir.
MR. MURRAY: Right. Overseas we are primarily-our people, families, are primarily in the military care system so it's still TRICARE but it is still predominantly military care. So, as the sergeant major pointed out, dental care comes under the military system versus having to go downtown and find a dentist downtown. Very little-while there are some specialties that we'll go to, it's very careful in the countries that we're in when we do that, so we have to screen families before they are assigned overseas to make sure we can provide that medical coverage for them for assignment. And while we're there, you know, sometimes we have to make movement of people and family, dependants, from one location to another location to get a geographic center.
REP. KNOLLENBERG: Do all the services screen?
MR. ESTRADA: Yes, we do. Yes.
REP. KNOLLENBERG: For example, in Germany I talked to a young combat leader concerned and complaining about the fact that, I think about the Frankfurt area we toured it-several bases. But they had to go to --
MR. MURRAY: Yes, sir.
REP. KNOLLENBERG: -- I guess there were some problems with transportation. They couldn't get away. On some occasions it was difficult for them and I understand that those kinds of things happen. Would you say that they're probably minor or --
MR. MURRAY: I believe they're minor because, I mean, logistics can be an issue maybe overseas to a certain degree, dependent on what the circumstances are special. I mean, no different than in the States. We still have pockets of areas that don't have the specialty care and won't subscribe to-doctors will not subscribe to TRICARE. That puts us some challenges. But overall we-we've seen in our time here significant improvements in the TRICARE system and continue to see that in the changes in regions today, taking us from 11 down to three providers in the three regions.
REP. KNOLLENBERG: I'm going to turn again to Mr. Bishop to wrap on this if we can, if that would be satisfactory. So with your agreement, that's what we'll do.
REP. BISHOP: With respect to your military medical facilities and the availability of healthcare for the dependants in particular, all of you are satisfied with the quality of it, you're satisfied with the availability of it? And have you-do you have facilities that you think would be amenable to co-service with the V.A., with veterans-retired veterans who may be in the areas where the military facilities are located but they may not be at the (aid facilities ?), You're not so much familiar with those facilities, the availability of them?
MR. SCOTT: With V.A. facilities?
REP. BISHOP: Yes. In other words, the facilities that are available for military personnel and their dependants for medical care. Is there sufficient room, opportunity for also serving veterans, retirees who now-once-they're retirees when they turn 65, they've got to go to Medicare.
MR. PRESTON: You know, I think as you go around and you look at different installations you'll hear-you'll see pockets of goodness out there and then you'll see others where, you know, hospitals are crowded and it's hard to get in to receive treatment and care. But, you know, the medical staffs and professionals that are out there are really doing very good at helping-you know, working through a lot of those issues.
REP. BISHOP: When you say "out there" you mean the military system or the --
MR. PRESTON: Well, the military system. And for the veterans that come into the military system who receive healthcare.
MR. ESTRADA: I have sort of stayed away from this one, kind of medical-there are still some issues with TRICARE and TRICARE has made tremendous improvement over the past few years. I don't like to talk too much on a personal level, but I have heard of the concerns of some Marines also. I am dealing with TRICARE right now and at my level I get to see some of the issues that some of the junior Marines and stuff have to deal with daily and really have no recourse.
Obviously, because of my position I can get things taken care of. I'm afraid some junior Marines and their families, that they cannot. It's still a maze to try to negotiate through TRICARE. My wife received an injury in a car accident just two days after I got back from the war, so I'm dealing with this personally, suffered a traumatic brain injury. And I don't want to talk much about myself because it's not about me so much as --
REP. BISHOP: Well, you're one of them and there are others that have been faced with the same kind of --
MR. ESTRADA: Yeah. And as busy as I am, I have to try to find time to try to negotiate the paperwork nightmare and hold off the bill collectors from trying to-put an emphasis on service members from time to time because some of the providers that may have provided services to my wife during a very tragic time may not have been approved by TRICARE at that time. What can you do at that time? This is what's available, this what's going to save their lives or whatever. So we still have some issues with TRICARE.
REP. BISHOP: We would be happy to hear any suggestions or recommendations that you could make in that regard, because I mean you're not the only person that has been faced with that and that's something that we can do to make sure that other folks don't have to go through that and other service members and their dependants don't have to experience that. It would be very helpful to us.
MR. ESTRADA: I'll get you some of that information, sir.
REP. KNOLLENBERG: Thank you, Mr. Bishop.
Mr. Goode.
REP. GOODE: Question, as I understand it, when a Reserve unit or a National Guard unit is activated then their families are immediately eligible for TRICARE. Is that correct?
MR. PRESTON: That's correct.
REP. GOODE: Let me ask you, suppose they-the activation was assumed to be for six months and they wanted to stay on their private plan, but then the activation is going to end up being a little over a year, we'll say, and the private plan says, "We don't want to fool with you any more." Can you get on TRICARE, my question is, any time that you need to after the activation even if you don't take it initially?
MR. PRESTON: Uh-huh. Yes.
(Laughter.)
REP. GOODE: I asked --
MR. PRESTON: (Cross talk.) That's why they're back there. That's a good question.
REP. KNOLLENBERG: I think we're pretty close to rounding things up here, and I again want to thank you gentlemen very, very much. Your input here is very valuable to us. And in closing, what I'd like to ask you, any one of you, just voice your thoughts. This committee, by the way and I wanted to point this out earlier too, feels very strongly about privatization costs. And I think we've heard today, pretty much, that you believe also -- (inaudible).
But in terms of its future, let me just lay out a couple of things. Is there something that this subcommittee should be dealing with or thinking about, if we're not, that has to do with quality of life issues? And you don't have to start on a wish list, but is there something that we're missing? Something we should oversight, look at more closely in your judgment? You gentlemen are about as up front as you can get with respect to -- (inaudible) -- so if there is something this is the time that you might think of something. If not, later, but if there's something right now --
MR. PRESTON: I would just say-I mean, sir, as you know, right now we're going through a transformation and at the same time fighting a war on terror. As I look back over the last big transformation we did after Desert Storm, you know, the level of anxiety and the angst amongst soldiers and families during a transformation like that creates a level of uncertainness, uneasiness about what lies down the road and what the future is. And I would say that, you know, your support to help us get through this transition period over the next three or four years is going to be very important to get through that as quick as we can so that soldiers can, one, see the light at the end of the tunnel and really understand what the end state of the Army is and what their future is going to look like.
MR. SCOTT: One of the areas that I've paid particular attention to is our sailors have a tremendous sense of commitment to what they do and don't mind and many times deal with and understand the necessity for the inconveniences that come with service, whether that's in the form of a PCS move where you have to pull children out of school or wives may have to leave their job or their may even have to sell cars or even sell homes and those kinds of things. They understand that there will be inconveniences associated with their service. I guess my frustration is knowing that sometimes those inconveniences cost them and that we should be pursuing areas and looking and exploring areas where it is costing them for serving in the form of inconveniences they have to pay for.
REP. KNOLLENBERG: That's something that-if you'd like to carry on and produce a very minimal document on some specifics perhaps-I guess that is something that's burdensome, very burdensome-and I think there are times I know that that must happen because --
MR. SCOTT: Yes, sir.
MR. ESTRADA: Mr. Chairman?
REP. KNOLLENBERG: Yes.
REP. BISHOP: Could that be some-for example, transition, if you own a home and you get PCS-get transferred and you've got to get new housing in that interim before that old house is sold and the new one is purchased, they've got a strain because they may be maintaining two mortgages. Is there something that we could perhaps do? Could there be a pool from which the government could perhaps purchase the homes at a fair market value and hold it in a pool of housing and allow some agency to handle the disposition of it, so that that doesn't have to fall on the service member?
REP. KNOLLENBERG: Just like in the private sector now where -- (off mike).
REP. BISHOP: Right, right. Yes.
MR. SCOTT: Even down to-and I would suggest that that is a substantial cost to our service member, or at least has the potential to be. But even down to, you know, just the cost of moving personal property from one location to another and having the appropriate allowance for that. The cost of-obviously a personal anecdote is the easiest one to remember, but moving to a location where because of the shipment time for your privately owned vehicle, it may be 90 to 120 days. But guess what? You arrive and they expect you to show up to work the next day.
REP. KNOLLENBERG: -- walk 20 miles.
MR. SCOTT: Not impossible, but it pays to take a little -- (off mike).
REP. KNOLLENBERG: Anybody else have --
MR. MURRAY: Sir, could I make a quick-I really appreciate how this committee-while you're a Military Construction Subcommittee, that you look at the broad range of quality of life-that's all of us, our service members, and that does mean a lot to us. I would like-however, I'd have one specific-you asked about an area to focus on. Most of our airfields and bases were Army Air Corps bases and airfields and one is reminded-even in overseas deployed area. I flew into Bagram, Afghanistan with General Jumper flying a C-17 in there. There are certain aircraft we can't fly out of there because that airfield is in such terrible condition. One, we will make a determination how long we should be there before we invest, you know, our American dollars there. But the other is that we maintain, fly and fix aircraft off of our -- (off mike) -- some of the hangars that we work out of today, that our maintenance works out of, is not much different from working outside.
REP. KNOLLENBERG: Hangars here?
MR. MURRAY: Hangars here on some of our bases. So the continued emphasis on the infrastructure that we have, the facilities that we have on our bases is very important and I would ask that you keep a view on what we prioritize there.
REP. KNOLLENBERG: I'm sure the staff -- (off mike).
MR. ESTRADA: I would concur with Chief Murray. Continued funding and support for facilities infrastructure. We do have the same things: hangars that are leaking, that's falling apart. And we should continue funding for our BEQs, for our single Marines and sailors that live aboard bases.
REP. KNOLLENBERG: Very good. I think we're at the conclusion of things. I again want to thank you very, very much for being here today. It's good to have your input. It's all -- (off mike) -- this will conclude this hearing. I guess the-for those that are interested, the subcommittee will reconvene at 1:30 and we'll get a chance to hear from military spouses and get their perspective on quality of life. So thank you all very much.
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