08 LC 36
1041
House
Resolution 1626
By:
Representatives Hamilton of the
23rd,
Amerson of the
9th,
Collins of the
27th,
Lunsford of the
110th,
Yates of the
73rd,
and others
A
RESOLUTION
Urging
the Surgeon General of the Army and the Chief, National Guard Bureau to change
existing policy regarding the ability of priority units within the National
Guard, who have a high probability of future deployment into a combat zone, to
receive Warfighter Refractive Eye Surgery Program (WRESP) benefits; and for
other purposes.
WHEREAS,
the Chief of Staff of the Army has written that "soldiers performing duties in
adverse conditions, often without timely optical fabrication support, will find
the lack of dependence on corrective lenses an invaluable asset in the confident
execution of their mission"; and
WHEREAS,
the Chief of Staff of the Army has also written that the WRESP program "offers
soldiers access to corrective eye surgery and provides commanders with an
important medical resource for the enhancement of soldier readiness";
and
WHEREAS,
the criteria under WRESP for selecting soldiers for laser eye correction gives
priority to special operations and combat arms units such as infantry, field
artillery, and armor battalions, as well as units whose mission involves
operations at the time of battle or behind hostile lines; and
WHEREAS,
the criteria for selecting soldiers for laser eye correction provides that
nonactive duty personnel are not authorized treatment under the program,
requires that a soldier must have at least 18 months remaining on active duty at
the time of surgery, and mandates that treated individuals must return for
follow-up visits as specified postoperatively in the applicable protocol as a
condition of treatment; and
WHEREAS,
the WRESP criteria provides for conflict with regard to the existence of
soldiers within the National Guard who fall under the WRESP criteria as priority
units yet fail to meet the criteria for time remaining on active duty, as
National Guard soldiers typically spend 365 days on active duty;
and
WHEREAS, priority units within the National Guard who are called to active duty are asked to perform the same tasks and duties as their full-time active duty counterparts yet are unable to participate in WRESP and therefore are at risk of being unable to perform their duties as effectively or as safely as their full-time active duty counterparts; and
WHEREAS, priority units within the National Guard who are called to active duty are asked to perform the same tasks and duties as their full-time active duty counterparts yet are unable to participate in WRESP and therefore are at risk of being unable to perform their duties as effectively or as safely as their full-time active duty counterparts; and
WHEREAS,
Department of Defense regulations require a minimum of 90 days to notify
National Guard units of alert to active duty, and WRESP regulations require a 90
day recovery period following corrective surgery, and this conflict of
scheduling hinders the ability of WRESP priority units within the National Guard
to receive corrective eye surgery; and
WHEREAS,
the Army should consider corrective eye surgery under WRESP to be a vital part
of adequately preparing soldiers for combat duty, just as pre-deployment
training is, and, just as is done for pre-deployment training, should set aside
time for corrective eye surgery to be completed; and
WHEREAS,
just as combat training schools set aside a percentage of placements in their
courses for National Guard soldiers, a percentage of surgical slots for
corrective laser eye surgery under WRESP should be set aside for National Guard
soldiers; and
WHEREAS,
questions of priority and time are recognized, and therefore, the following
actions should be pursued: classification as a "priority" unit in terms of
eligibility for WRESP should be based upon the actual role of the unit in a
combat zone rather than the unit's status as active duty or National Guard;
identification of priority (i.e. Special Operations) units within the National
Guard who have a high probability of being called to active duty and scheduled
for rotation be carried out by establishing an allotment of a minimum of six
months prior to highly probable deployment for such units to ensure adequate
time for postoperative recovery and required checkups and notification of active
duty alert; and
WHEREAS,
the ongoing War in Iraq has taken a significant toll on the National Guard, and
providing benefits for priority units within it will aid in its continuing
mission in the Middle East; and
WHEREAS,
if the aforementioned actions are taken, all units, whether full-time active
duty or National Guard, who can be classified as priority units will be
adequately prepared to effectively and safely carry out their duties and advance
the mission of the United States Army in the ongoing Global War on
Terror.
NOW,
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES that the members of
this body urge the Surgeon General of the Army and the Chief, National Guard
Bureau to change existing regulations to enable priority units within the
National Guard, for whom a call to active duty is highly probable, to receive
corrective laser eye surgery under WRESP.
BE
IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Clerk of the House of Representatives is authorized
and directed to transmit appropriate copies of this resolution to each member of
the Georgia congressional delegation; the Secretary of Defense; and the Chief,
National Guard Bureau.