Preparing for the Future of Combat Casualty Care: Opportunities to Refine the Military Health System's Alignment with the National Defense Strategy
Abstract
The Military Health System (MHS) comprises a global network of treatment facilities and medical providers. During day-to-day operations, health care coverage under the MHS benefit extends to more than9 million beneficiaries, including active-duty and reserve-component service members, military retirees, and their families. In addition to providing health care during peacetime, the MHS also offers medical care to troops injured in combat. Although the MHS has proved capable in treating wounded service members in recent conflict environments, the 2018 National Defense Strategy (NDS) highlights how future combat operations maybe distinctly different from those of the past few decades. For example, potential adversaries are investing in long-range, high-precision missile systems. With these capabilities, an adversary might choose to direct strikes against operational infrastructure, such as runways and fuel reserves. Loss of these assets can significantly degrade U.S. combat capabilities. Furthermore, with large-scale missile strikes, casualty streams are likely to be quite significant at operating locations across the combat theater. High casualty volume can sorely tax the capability, capacity, and throughput of deployed medical care. But challenges to medical support resulting from adversary action could be even more direct. For example, it is dangerous to evacuate patients during active combat, and treatment facilities close to conflict operations could, themselves, be at risk of an adversary strike.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jul 01, 2021
- Accession Number
- AD1143341
Entities
People
- Brent Thomas
Organizations
- RAND Corporation