The Pentagon has released new details about defence secretary Lloyd Austin’s secretive stay in hospital.
It states Mr Austin underwent a medical procedure on December 22, went home a day later, and was admitted to intensive care on January 1 when he began experiencing severe pain.
The latest information came as members of both parties in Congress expressed concerns about the secrecy of Mr Austin’s hospital stay and the fact that the president and other senior leaders were kept in the dark about it for days.
The statement, released by Air Force Major General Pat Ryder, did not, however, provide any details about the medical procedure or what actually happened on Monday to require Mr Austin to be in intensive care at the Walter Reed Army Medical Centre in Washington DC.
Mr Ryan said Mr Austin was placed in the hospital’s intensive care unit “due to his medical needs, but then remained in that location in part due to hospital space considerations and privacy”.
The Pentagon’s failure to disclose Mr Austin being taken to hospital, including to President Joe Biden, the National Security Council and top Pentagon leaders, for days reflects a lack of transparency about his illness, how serious it was and when he may be released.
Such secrecy, when the United States is juggling myriad national security crises, runs counter to normal practice with the president and other senior US officials and Cabinet members.
Mr Ryder said the National Security Council and deputy secretary of defence Kathleen Hicks were not notified until Thursday, January 4, that Mr Austin had been in hospital since January 1.
Mr Ryder said Mr Austin’s chief of staff Kelly Magsamen was ill and “unable to make notifications before then”.
He said she informed Ms Hicks and the national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, on Thursday.
Once notified, Ms Hicks began preparing statements to send to Congress and made plans to return to Washington.
Ms Hicks was in Puerto Rico on leave but had communications equipment with her to remain in contact and had already been tasked with some secretary-level duties on Tuesday.
The Pentagon did not say if Ms Hicks was given an explanation on Tuesday for why she was assuming some of Mr Austin’s duties, but temporary transfers of authority are not unusual and are often done without detailed explanations.
Ms Hicks decided not to return after she was informed that Mr Austin would resume full control on Friday.
Mr Biden was told of Mr Austin’s medical stay on Thursday by Mr Sullivan, according to three people with knowledge of the situation who were not authorised to speak publicly and spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity.
In a statement issued on Saturday evening, Mr Austin took responsibility for the delays in notification.
He said: “I recognise I could have done a better job ensuring the public was appropriately informed. I commit to doing better.
“But this is important to say: this was my medical procedure, and I take full responsibility for my decisions about disclosure.”
Mr Austin, 70, remains in hospital, and officials have been unable to say how long he will be at Walter Reed.
In his statement, Mr Austin said he is on the mend and is looking forward to returning to the Pentagon soon, but he provided no other details about his ailment.
