Snapped Shot

So, what's the real story? Behind that dilapadated building and those bureaucratic snafus at Walter Reed, you'll find a military health care system was "downsized" and "outsourced" throughout the 1990s. And, many of the decisions that produced the current scandal at Walter Reed were made before 9-11; for example, the Post barely mentions that the military has been trying to close Walter Reed for years, and consolidate operations at Bethesda Naval Hospital outside Washington--the facility where members of Congress are treated. Walter Reed is slated for closing on the most recent BRAC list, making it a lower priority for funding, despite the influx of wounded from Iraq and Afghanistan.

As for the VA, I think Congress had the right idea in the early 90s, when key members advocated scrapping the system altogether, and starting anew. Contrary to what the folks at Time might think, the VA health care network remains woefully inefficient, and it's hardly a model for the nation. If anything good comes out of the Walter Reed scandal--other than improving care and accomodations for wounded troops--it will be the needed "debunking" of recent myths involving the VA and the supposed quality of its care.