Retired general: What is reasonable to expect from US military in a pandemic (opinion) - CNN
“As the federal and state governments grapple with the potential effects of the Covid-19 pandemic across the nation, there has been an increasing call for mobilizing the military to contribute to the pandemic response. In a New York Times
opinion piece, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo suggested that the Army Corps of Engineers should be called into service to assist to "retrofit and refit existing facilities" to serve as temporary medical centers”
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Indeed, the Joint Staff received approval from the Secretary of Defense early in February to
refresh their contingency plans for the "response, isolation, quarantine, restriction of movement and community-based intervention" of any potential pandemic. But what does all that actually mean for our country's citizens and government officials as we address the anxiety associated with the coronavirus? What can the military contribute?”
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“Whenever military forces are given the mission to "provide support to civil authorities," the Secretary of Defense, Joint Staff and the Commander charged with the mission first consider two competing requirements: how does the military force continue to maintain readiness for their priority task of defending the country, and what forces could the military provide that could be mobilized and that would best contribute to the department -- in this case, Health and Human Services -- requesting the support?
Governor Cuomo suggests that the Army Corps of Engineers -- a force of approximately 37,000 civilian and soldiers spread all over the world -- could assist in overhauling and renovating hospitals.”
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“There have also been suggestions that the military could provide medical personnel to support civilian authorities. This is certainly a possibility.”
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“In an
excellent piece on this topic Sunday, CNN reporters outlined various aspects of mobilizing the limited active and reserve elements of the military's medical command structure to support civilian authorities.”
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BBM:
“There are, however, some tasks the military can be mobilized to perform that would significantly contribute to mitigating the Covid-19 pandemic. Primarily, the military could assist with command and control of operations and functions, given that commanders and their staffs continuously practice managing information and deliberations regarding crisis decision making.
Additionally, the military -- both active and reserve forces - are extremely good at logistics, transportation and supply chain activity. Lt. Gen. Russ Honore's actions as the commander of Joint Task Force Katrina
is a perfect example of how a military commander can contribute to both command and control as well as logistical support that contributes when mitigating and reducing a crisis.
During the Ebola crisis, America's military provided additional support --under a two-star general -- by establishing a facility in West Africa to train doctors from all over the world before they entered the "hot zone."
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