The Secretary of Defense of the United States, Lloyd Austin, was discharged from the hospital this Tuesday after spending two days in the intensive care unit of the Walter Reed military hospital on the outskirts of Washington due to bladder problems, as reported this Tuesday by the Pentagon. The retired four-star general “is recovering well and has resumed all his duties and duties,” his department said in a statement.
According to the document, both the White House and Congress, the defense staff and its “number two” at the Pentagon, Kathleen Hicks, were informed about the US military official's return to duty. Following medical advice, Austin will continue his recovery at home for a few more days before returning to his office at the Department of Defense later this week. In order to adequately carry out its tasks remotely, “it has full access to the necessary secret and unclassified communications systems.”
Austin was admitted on Sunday because of bladder problems related to the surgery he underwent in December to treat his cancer. “His condition indicated the need for monitoring by the critical care and support team,” said the doctors who treated him at Walter Reed. Doctors emphasize that the cause of his problems was identified on Monday and resolved through non-surgical procedures. “The bladder problem was unrelated to his cancer diagnosis and will have no impact on his excellent prognosis for his cancer treatment,” they add.
The retired general sparked controversy in January when it was revealed that he had been hospitalized but did not inform the White House or the rest of the government until four days after he was admitted to the intensive care unit.
On December 22nd, Austin underwent surgery for cancer and was released almost immediately. But on January 1, he was readmitted to Walter Reed Military Hospital on the outskirts of Washington due to complications from the disease. Neither the White House nor Hicks, who was on vacation, received notification of the hospitalization until the 4th. The Minister of Defense did not announce the reason for his admission until the 9th. He was released on January 15th.
The incident prompted the Pentagon to launch a thirty-day investigation into how the communications blackout was possible and to update its protocols for notification of such situations. As head of the U.S. military, the Secretary of Defense must be available at all times in the event of a national security emergency.
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Austin is scheduled to appear before the House Armed Services Committee on February 29 to testify about the incident. After his hospitalization was revealed in January, several members of Congress and the presumptive Republican nominee in November's presidential election, Donald Trump, called for the resignation of Austin, the former commander of U.S. troops in Iraq and Afghanistan and first secretary of defense.
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