Hot Line for Wounded Succeeding

By: fedweek

The Wounded Soldier and Family Hotline Call Center received more than 3,000 calls during the three months since it began operating March 19. The line was established for soldiers and family members in response to scandals regarding unsatisfactory treatment and living conditions, and unconscionable delays in processing for evaluation and compensation for wounds at Walter Reed Army Medical Center. Col. Ed Mason, director of the hotline, said that when a caller phones the hot line, the person who answers puts the caller in direct contact with the agency needed to address the problem. The hot line, staffed by Army officers and civilians at Human Resources Command in Alexandria, Va., reports its findings to senior Army echelons in order to avoid the information vacuum that existed before the Walter Reed scandal broke. The Wounded Soldier and Family Hotline Call Center is at (800) 984-8523.