Dominguez exit interview: Fixing health care

[unhappycamper]

Dominguez exit interview: Fixing health care
By Kelly Kennedy - Staff writer
Posted : Thursday Mar 5, 2009 14:37:34 EST

Michael Dominguez, who is stepping down after 2½ years as principal deputy undersecretary of defense for personnel and readiness, said he was caught short when the Walter Reed scandal broke just months after he took office, but he added that he’s proud of how the military has reacted to the crisis since.

Still, he acknowledged that the cultural change necessary to help troops deal with post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury will be a long time coming to a military that he said too often still thinks: Service first, service members second.

Fortunately, he said, the Obama administration approved “every last dime” he requested for wounded warriors in the 2010 budget.

Since the Walter Reed scandal hit in February 2007, Dominguez said he has spent about 80 percent of his time working on wounded warrior issues.

In a wide-ranging interview in his Pentagon office shortly before his departure, he offered his thoughts on how those issues have unfolded during his tenure.


Rest of article at: http://armytimes.com/news/2009/03/military_dominguez_030509w/%2e