Twenty percent of Army generals could not deploy in 2016 for medical reasons, according to information obtained by USA Today, the publication reported Monday.
This reveals another aspect of the problems reported in the military's readiness to fight that Defense Secretary Jim Mattis has made a top priority since taking office in January 2017.
Indeed, according to the Army's top spokesman Brig. Gen. Omar Jones, the deployment rate has subsequently already improved to nearly 85 percent since the time of the 2016 report.
He specifically mentioned that one of the main reasons for the unpreparedness to deploy was overdue medical and dental exams, a fairly easy oversight to fix which have since been rectified.
USA Today obtained the information through the Freedom of Information Act. The data were included in a June 2017 report on the state of the Army's general officer corps that was commissioned after a number of scandals involving generals and admirals came to light.
Although most of that report was redacted, sections that included data on deployability for generals and plans to improve their mental and physical health were included.
The report also had a recommendation to "Enforce Wellness" that allows generals to get the evaluations and treatment they needed and "ensure that they do so."
The report also urged generals to look after their own wellness and encourages them to take at least one 10-day vacation and to get enough sleep.
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