Walter Reed to close after more than a century

[midnight]

Source: WASHINGTON Associated Press



WASHINGTON (AP) — Walter Reed Army Medical Center, the Army's flagship hospital where privates to presidents have gone for care, is closing its doors after more than a century.
Hundreds of thousands of the nation's war wounded from World War I to today have received treatment at Walter Reed, including 18,000 troops who served in Iraq and Afghanistan.
President Dwight Eisenhower died there. So did Gens. John J. Pershing and Douglas MacArthur.
It's where countless celebrities, from Bob Hope to quarterback Tom Brady, have stopped to show their respect to the wounded. Through the use of medical diplomacy, the center also has tended to foreign leaders.

Read more: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/3d281c11a96b4ad082fe88aa0db04305/Article_2011-07-23-US-Closing-Walter-Reed/id-b6d92be86cb148f6b3b037352e8855c5

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edited to fit rules of paragraphs...

[gateley]

1. We're losing ourselves. What have we become? :( nt

[florida_lurker]

4. ?

They're not closing up shop, they're moving the mission to the new Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda.

[Ruby the Liberal]

2. President Cheney privatized Walter Reed some years ago

My neurosurgeon, career military, left there and went into private practice after his retirement because conditions had gotten so bad.

Edit - quick google, first link that came up: http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x2761973

[midnight]

5. DOD appears to be aware, but wanted to close the joint...so they did nothing to improve the place.

"It concluded that the Defense Department was or should have been aware of the widespread problems but neglected them because they knew Walter Reed was scheduled to be closed. Then-Defense Secretary Robert Gates agreed, and said there was little wisdom in pouring money into Walter Reed to keep it open indefinitely.
"Far better to make an investment in brand-new, 21st-century facilities," Gates told reporters.
Pierce said the quality of medical care at Walter Reed didn't suffer, even leading up to the scandal."

[Davis_X_Machina]

3. This or a similar move has been in the works for 20 years...

....WRAMC was on the 2005 BRAC list.

[midnight]

6. Interesting plan... I wonder who profits from this move?

[Davis_X_Machina]

8. The Bethesda property being expanded is where the Naval Hospital has been forever...

...and the old site is, much to Matt Yglesias' disgust, restricted to reuse by statute "for homeless assistance, parks, recreation, wildlife conservation, lighthouses, historic monuments, education, public health, jails, law enforcement facilities, HUD self-help programs, airports, seaports, veterans cemeteries, or emergency management facilities, among other uses."

So basically, no one except the contractors actually working to expand WRNMMC-Bethesda, or repurposing the buildings at the old WRAMC.

[Chan790]

10. Lighthouses?

It's on top of Mount Pleasant (to be clear, the actual mountaintop is almost to the MD border up past AK Ave. NW and is nowhere need the eponymous neighborhood) 2.25mi from the Anacostia River, the nearest body of water. The Anacostia isn't even channeled and has no need of lighthouses.

[Davis_X_Machina]

11. The language is common to all BRAC properties.

[MADem]

13. +1 nt

[bikebloke]

7. My grandfather died there.

He, like many others, was gassed in the Great War, dying years after the war ended.

[Cirque du So-What]

9. It's time to move on to better facilities

I understand sentimentality toward venerated institutions like Walter Reed, but the welfare of the patients outweighs attachment to its buildings. The talent of the medical professionals will transfer to new facilities nicely. Leave nosocomial infections behind in the dilapidated buildings!

[MADem]

12. I spent a lot of time at Walter Reed, and I agree with you.

Even the existing facilities at Bethesda are nicer. They're also right across the road from the NIH. That Georgia Avenue location was a pain in the ass to get to and that underground parking facility was just too small.

[boppers]

14. Relocate != close.

Silliness.

[chill_wind]

15. TPM has a retrospective in pictures:

http://media.talkingpointsmemo.com/slideshow/walter-reed-closing?ref=fpb



"The Walter Reed Army Medical Center, founded in 1909, is closing its doors and relocating to a new location in Bethesda, Maryland. On May 1, 1909, congressional legislation authorized construction of the Walter Reed General Hospital, a medical center dedicated to treating active and retired personnel from all branches of the military. Since its foundation, the hospital has treated hundreds of thousands of wounded soldiers from World War I, World War II, Korea, Vietnam, and most recently, from Iraq and Afghanistan. In 2007, however, the Washington Post reported that the so-called “crown jewel of military medicine” was actually in disrepair, “a holding ground for physically and psychologically damaged outpatients.” The investigation uncovered unlivable conditions and bureaucratic red tape that delayed discharges. The findings resulted in a government investigation, and ultimately, an investment in a new facility in Bethesda. TPM takes a look at Walter Reed over the years."

[craigmatic]

16. America is dying plain and simple.

[cbdo2007]

17. Thank you Walter Reed Hospital.....

for helping my brother when we needed you.