01 Mar 06

Dear Friends of the Department of Veterinary Pathology, AFIP,

     The Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) plan for the Department of Defense
Veterinary Pathology Residency (DODVPR) is a "discretionary move" to the Daniel K.
Inouye Building, co-located with Walter Reed Army Institute of Research (WRAIR),
Silver Spring, MD, in the summer of 2010. This is but one step in the process of
continuation; there are many hurdles left to clear.

     As a reminder, in May of 2005, the DOD issued its BRAC recommendations to
Congress. The recommendations included closure of Walter Reed Army Medical Center
(WRAMC) and disestablishment of the AFIP. There was no mention of the DODVPR in
the recommendations, but a supplemental document used in preparing them demonstrated
the DOD's understanding of the military relevance of the program. Following a
justification process and consideration of relocation options, the Army Medical
Department recommended retention of the DODVPR as a "discretionary move" to
WRAIR. In August, the BRAC commission voted to close WRAMC as recommended
by the DOD. The commission went one step further and amended the original Medical
Joint Cross Service Recommendation 4, WRAMC, by inserting the following statement:
"...AFIP capabilities not specified in this recommendation will be absorbed into other
DOD, Federal, or civilian facilities, as necessary;..." This amendment affirmed the earlier
decision to retain the DODVPR. President Bush concurred with and sent the BRAC
commission's report to Congress in September. The BRAC recommendations officially
took effect 9 November as Congress allowed them to pass into law.

     While in the somewhat tenuous category known as "discretionary move", I am
nonetheless confident that we have a bright future ahead of us. The category title may
suit the BRAC process, but what is categorically not discretionary is the DOD's
responsibility to "Provide veterinary support to the DoD Components for research,
development, test, and evaluation (RDT&E) and for training activities", as spelled out in
DOD Directive 6400.4. By achieving the status of "discretionary move" we have already
proved that the DODVPR is the best way to fulfill this responsibility.

COL Dale G. Dunn
Chairman






Previous BRAC Statements
30 Jun 05 | 26 Aug 05 | 07 Nov 05 | 10 Nov 05
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