JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO-FORT SAM HOUSTON, Texas –
At the request of the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Department of Health and Human Services, approximately 220 military medical personnel have deployed or will deploy in ten new teams to eight states and the Navajo Nation to support civilian healthcare workers treating COVID-19 patients.
“As our support to FEMA and the whole-of-government response to the pandemic expands due to a surge in hospitalizations, we are committed to working alongside our civilian medical partners to assist hard-hit states and communities in need,” said Lt. Gen. John R. Evans Jr., U.S. Army North commander. “Whether military or civilian, we are in this fight together.”
On Dec. 30, 2021, the Secretary of Defense approved the activation of an additional 1,000 military medical personnel to support the federal COVID-19 response mission. These additional pesonnel, configured into 43 medical teams, join 20 teams of approximately 400 military medical personnel who have been providing assistance to civilian hospitals since August of 2021.
Out of the additional 43 medical teams, 20 teams were made available to support requests for federal support on Jan. 15, 2022, with the balance of the military medical teams made available by the end of January.
The deploying teams announced today include a combination of existing teams assigned to the federal COVID-19 response mission, as well as these recently assigned additional forces.
The five new states in which the Department of Defense is providing hospital support include Missouri, New Jersey, Ohio, Rhode Island, and Texas.
- In Missouri, a 40-person team from the U.S. Navy will support Christian Hospital in St. Louis.
- In New Jersey, a 20-person team from the U.S. Army will support University Hospital in Newark.
- In Ohio, a 20-person team from the U.S. Air Force is supporting the Cleveland Clinic in Cleveland.
- In Rhode Island, a 20-person team from the U.S. Army will support Rhode Island Hospital in Providence.
- In Texas, a 20-person team from the U.S. Army will support Baptist St. Anthony’s Hospital in Amarillo.
In addition, a 20-person team from the U.S. Army will support the Navajo Nation at Northern Navajo Medical Center in Shiprock, New Mexico.
The three states where support was expanded include Michigan, New Mexico, and New York.
- In Michigan, a 20-person team from the U.S. Army will support Henry Ford Wyandotte Hospital in Wyandotte. This team joins four other teams in Dearborn, Grand Rapids, Saginaw, and Muskegon.
- In New Mexico, a 20-person team from the U.S. Navy will support the University of New Mexico Hospital in Albuquerque. This team joins another team in Farmington.
- In New York, one 20-person team from the U.S. Army will support Coney Island Hospital in Brooklyn, while another 20-person team from the U.S. Army will support North Central Bronx Hospital in the Bronx. These two teams join another team in Buffalo.
In addition to the aforementioned teams and locations, the joint DOD effort currently includes eight teams working in six other states – one in Arizona, one in Indiana, two in Minnesota, one in New Hampshire, two in Pennsylvania, and one in Wisconsin.
The military medical personnel includes nurses, respiratory therapists, and medical doctors.
U.S. Army North, under U.S. Northern Command’s oversight, provides operational command of the teams.