(February 23, 2007)--Secretary of Defense Robert Gates says he has commissioned a panel to conduct an independent review of Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C., in the wake of a report in the Washington Post describing deteriorating conditions and substandard care for hundreds of outpatients.

Walter Reed Army Medical Center is the foremost medical provider for soldiers returning from Iraq and Afghanistan.

The paper reported conditions of moldy rooms and cockroaches at a former hotel known as Building 18 where hundreds of outpatients are housed during their recuperation, and of wounded soldiers caring for other wounded soldiers.

Gates said he was dismayed by the reports and visited the facility himself on Friday.

"I'm grateful to reporters for bringing this problem to our attention, but very disappointed we did not identify it ourselves," he said.

Gates emphasized that it was the outpatient facilities and the bureaucracy soldiers must navigate that need correcting; he called the medical care first rate.

"The men and women recovering at Walter Reed and at other military hospitals have put their lives on the line and paid a considerable price for defending our country,” he said.

“They should not have to recuperate in substandard housing, nor should they be expected to tackle mountains of paperwork and bureaucratic processes during this difficult period for themselves and for their families," he said.

He said the problems would be fixed and fast.

The independent panel will also review care at the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Md.

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