The Air Force’s top doctor, Lt. Gen. James Roudebush, says the Air Force is facing “major challenges” in its medical arena. He told lawmakers last week that the drive to become ever more efficient has caused the USAF medical force “to programmatically reduce our operating platforms and take risks in areas we’d prefer not take risk.” Roudebush declared that “a significant and sustained shortfall” in military construction funding has produced “much older, much less efficient, and much more costly facilities.” He also pointed to an “increasingly difficult” recruiting and retention environment and trouble in “finding the right balance” for military to civilian personnel conversions. However, despite these dire warnings, Roudebush maintained that the Air Force medics, “at the end of the day,” continue to provide “world-class health care.”
Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth vowed to undertake far-reaching reforms on the way the U.S. military buys weapons, promising a sweeping overhaul of the way the Defense Department determines requirements, handles the acquisition process, and tests its kit. The fundamental goal, which Hegseth underscored in a 1-hour and 10-minute speech…
