From Fortune:

Senior Biden administration leaders, top Pentagon officials, and Congress were unaware for days that Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin had been hospitalized. The Pentagon did not inform the White House until Thursday, and the failure to disclose it reflects a lack of transparency and runs counter to normal practice with senior officials and cabinet members.

Austin was hospitalized for complications following a minor elective medical procedure and expressed confidence within President Joe Biden. Austin took responsibility for the delays in notification and vowed to do better with transparency, but provided no details about his ailment. The Pentagon, including members of Congress, was unaware of the situation until Friday.

Air Force Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder confirmed the notification to the White House and the Joint Chiefs of Staff but could not provide a specific time of notification. Deputy Defense Secretary Kathleen Hicks oversaw things while Austin was incapacitated and said Austin is recovering well and resumed full duties Friday evening from his hospital bed.

“The Department of Defense deliberately withheld the Secretary of Defense’s medical condition for days. That is unacceptable,” said Mississippi Sen. Roger Wicker, the highest-ranking Republican on the Senate Armed Services Committee. “We are learning more every hour about the Department’s shocking defiance of the law.” Kontroversi Keterlambatan Pemulangan Menteri Pertahanan Austin, Menteri Pertahanan mengakui keterlambatannya dalam pemberitahuan.

“The fact that he has been at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center for four days and the Pentagon is only now alerting the public late on a Friday evening is an outrage,” the PPA said in its letter. “At a time when there are growing threats to U.S. military service members in the Middle East and the U.S. is playing key national security roles in the wars in Israel and Ukraine, it is particularly critical for the American public to be informed about the health status and decision-making ability of its top defense leader.” In the past, other senior U.S. leaders have been much more transparent about hospital stays. When Attorney General Merrick Garland went in for a routine medical procedure in 2022, his office informed the public a week in advance and outlined how long he was expected to be out and when he would return to work.

Austin’s hospitalization comes at a critical time as Iranian-backed militias have been launching attacks at bases where U.S. troops are stationed in Iraq and Syria. Attacks on commercial vessels by Houthi militants in Yemen and the effort to supply weapons and training to Ukraine are other key issues.



Read more: White House not informed of Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin’s hospitalization for days: officials