The top Pentagon health affairs official, William Winkenwerder, believes the Defense Department’s new plan to merge—where it can—elements of the military health care system will make a good system better. He told American Forces Press Service: “Our system does work well now; we have great outcomes in battlefield medicine and in the care of our wounded—the best in history. … “We have a clear set of ideas that things can work even better.” The Pentagon plans to create a transition team to work toward “major changes in governance” by 2009.
U.S. aircraft, drones, and attack helicopters have launched significant airstrikes in recent days against Islamic State militants in Syria as part of the renewed air campaign against remnants of the group, U.S. officials said.
