rutstein retirement sends shock waves throughout the commissioned

COMMISSIONED OFFICERS ASSOCIATION 

VOL. 47, ISSUE 8 Salus Populi Suprema Lex Este 

OCTOBER 2010 

Rutstein Retirement Sends Shock Waves throughout 

the Commissioned Corps and the Public Health Community 

RADM David 

Rutstein, USPHS, 

(Ret.) 

In an email 

to all PHS 

Commissioned 

Corps officers on 

September 22nd, 

Rear Admiral 

David Rutstein, 

Acting Deputy 

Surgeon General 

and former 

Director, Office 

of Force Readiness and Deployment, 

announced his retirement effective 1 

October. RADM Rutstein has been 

serving as the Acting Deputy Surgeon 

General since January. In the nine 

months since RADM Rutstein was 

appointed acting deputy, no one has 

been named as the permanent Deputy 

Surgeon General. 

RADM Rutstein’s retirement comes 

only two months after the retirement of 

the Office of Surgeon General (OSG) 

FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR 

Changes Coming; but still some months away 

Jerry Farrell 

Executive Director 

Dear Friends of the 

Commissioned Corps, 

If you haven’t already 

noticed, this 

month’s Frontline is 

late. We were already 

late enough, but ready 

to go to press at the 

end of the first week in October when 

I received a call from the office of the 

Assistant Secretary for Health (ASH). I 

was invited to participate in a telephone 

meeting with Dr. Koh and Surgeon 

General Benjamin on the afternoon of 

October 12th to discuss current issues 

facing the Commissioned Corps. 

Chief of Staff, and long-time Acting 

Deputy Surgeon General, RADM Bob 

Williams. RADM Williams retired on 

July 31st and a permanent relief has yet 

to be named. The resulting leadership 

vacuum within the OSG is a cause for 

grave concern among COA members, 

many of whom have contacted COA 

headquarters to express their alarm. 

The leadership crisis within OSG comes 

at a time when critical issues regarding 

the Corps remain unresolved. The 

Department of Health and Human 

Services (DHHS) has taken no action to 

implement any of the three provisions 

in the Affordable Care Act that pertain 

to the Commissioned Corps. Instead of 

moving to expand the Corps as provided 

for in the law, DHHS instituted a 

“pause” in calls-to-duty. No new officers 

have been accessed into the Corps in 

six months. The Ready Reserve has yet 

to be established; and funding for the 

I was happy to accept the invitation on 

behalf of COA. The call with me on 

the 12th immediately followed a call between 

the ASH, SG and the CPO’s, flag 

officers, and SG PAC Reps. And, much 

as I liked the column I had written for 

this space addressing these issues, the 

prudent and appropriate course of action 

was to hold the presses pending the 

telephone meeting. 

Public Health Science Track has yet to 

be transferred by the DHHS Secretary 

to OSG as directed in the law. 

The Department’s actions with respect 

to the Corps appear to contradict the 

words of Secretary Sebelius in her 

message to DHHS employees recognizing 

the six-month anniversary of the 

Affordable Care Act becoming law on 

March 23rd. The Secretary wrote, “I 

am so impressed with the work so many 

of you have done in these last 180 days 

to turn the legislation that Congress 

passed and the President signed into 

reality for all Americans.” There is one 

group of Americans for whom the law 

has yet to become reality - the PHS 

Commissioned Corps. 

COA salutes the extraordinary career 

of RADM Rutstein, from his selfless 

service in Micronesia for many years, to 

See Retirement on pg. 9... 

mission; implementation of the Ready 

Reserve and other provisions pertaining 

to the Corps in the Patient Protection and 

Affordable Care Act (PPACA); and lifting 

the “pause” in new calls-to-duty. 

This call was to discuss the first of 

these four issues with the others being 

reserved for future calls. The ASH 

then briefed me on the activities of 

the Department to address the Corps’ 

management issues. Dr. Koh was kind 

enough to acknowledge that I had 

raised these issues with him during our 

meeting in Boston prior to his formal 

Dr. Koh opened our call by commenting 

on the need for open dialog on 

the critical issues facing the Corps. 

He proceeded to identify four issues: 

the Corps’ management structure; nomination and confirmation as ASH. 

clarifying and crystallizing the Corps’ see Executive Director on pg 14...

COA MEMBER BENEFITS 

Capitol Hill Representation 

COA efforts on Capitol Hill 

Continually support all 

Commissioned Corps officers – 

active, inactive reserve, and retired. 

Car Rental Discount - AVIS & 

Budget 

Members enjoy discount rates on 

Avis and Budget rentals through the 

COA Members Only website. 

Financial Services – 

Pentagon Federal Credit 

Union 

PenFed is an on-line credit union 

providing full service to members 

worldwide. Visit the COA Members 

Only website to join. 

Frontline 

COA’s newsletter reports on monthly 

activities and items of interest to COA 

members about the Corps & COA. 

Insurance Programs - AGIA 

COA enables members to participate 

in several low-cost insurance 

programs that may continue after 

leaving the PHS as long as your 

membership in COA remains current. 

Local Representation 

COA Branches generate new venues 

for meeting fellow officers within 

your local area while providing a 

forum for the discussion of concerns 

within the Commissioned Corps. 

Publication - Public Health 

Reports 

COA members receive a free 

subscription to the Public Health 

Reports, available at the COA Members 

Only website. 

Ribbon 

The COA ribbon is authorized to 

be worn on the PHS uniform by 

members in good standing when attending 

COA functions. 

Scholarship Program 

COA offers thousands of dollars 

towards college scholarships for children 

and spouses of COA members. 

legislative update 

NDAA Stalled as Congress Leaves Town 

Fate of ‘TRICARE 26’ Proposals Unclear 

In ordinary years and under ordinary 

circumstances, the dense and 

critically important National Defense 

Authorization Act (NDAA) would be 

treated as a must-pass bill, and it would 

have been approved by now. But this 

rancorous political year is not ordinary. 

And the NDAA, among many other 

bills, is stalled. 

In the face of a so-called wave election, 

Congress recessed in mid-September, 

not to return until November 8. Onethird 

of Senate seats and all House seats 

are up for grabs. Many first-term lawmakers, 

and perhaps even some longtime 

committee chairs, are unlikely to return 

in January. The House and possibly even 

the Senate may change hands. Even if 

that does not happen, the composition of 

Congress will change anyway because 

a handful of winners of special elections 

can claim their seats immediately, 

without waiting for the 112th Congress 

to convene in January. 

The pile of unfinished legislative business 

left behind includes much that COA 

cares deeply about, including Post-9/11 

GI Bill transferability and DHHS appropriations, 

as well as the NDAA. 

The NDAA is important because it 

sets defense policy and authorizes pay 

and benefit levels for all active-duty 

and retired members of the federal 

uniformed services, including the PHS 


The FY 2011 NDAA include an acrossthe-board 

pay raise of 1.9 percent. This 

was the President’s recommendation, 

which exceeds the 1.4 percent figure initially 

proposed by congressional leaders. 

The Senate version of the NDAA 

includes a provision that mentions the 

PHS Commissioned Corps by name. It 

would ease accession and promotion 

for medical students at the Uniformed 

Services University of the Health 

Sciences (USUHS) who have prior commissioned 

service. 

For many uniformed services families, 

however, the big issue in the FY 2011 

NDAA is not pay, but continued health 

care coverage for adult children who are 

about to “age out” of TRICARE. It is 

the issue known as TRICARE 26. 

I wrote about this issue earlier this year 

in Frontline. Since then, I have heard 

from dozens of concerned COA members 

who have kindly shared their personal 

and often compelling stories. COA 

is very grateful to all. My counterparts 

in The Military Coalition report a 

similar outpouring of interest from 

their members, and the result has been 

a renewed effort to move TRICARE 26 

forward, with or without the NDAA. 

Both the House (HR 5136) and the 

Senate (S. 3454) versions of the NDAA 

would require TRICARE to allow 

parents to continue including their adult 

children on their own policies until their 

children reach age 26. Both versions 

would have parents pay for the extended 

coverage. The House provision, included 

in the bill (HR 5136) that passed the 

House on May 28, would have taken 

effect October 1. The Senate proposal 

would take effect in January. The difference 

would have been resolved in a 

House-Senate conference committee. 

By the end of the summer, and with no 

apparent opposition, the TRICARE 26 

issue seemed to be safely embedded in 

must-pass legislation that was already 

half-way home. 

see Legislative Update on pg 7... 

2 commissioned officers association

COA BRANCH 

PHS Officers Volunteer at Washington, DC Area Food Bank 

DC-COA Volunteers at the National 

Capital Area Food Bank 

On a hot and humid Saturday in July, 

42 Commissioned Officers and 

10 family members traveled to a warehouse 

in Washington, DC to volunteer 

at the National Capital Area Food Bank 

(CAFB). They sorted and packed nonperishable 

food items for distribution to 

those in need. This is not the first time 

Public Health Service (PHS) officers 

have so generously given of their time 

in support of the mission of the CAFB. 

Since 2007, more than 60 PHS officers 

have volunteered to sort non-perishable 

food items to help CAFB fulfill its 

mission. This event was coordinated 

under the auspices of the District of 

Columbia Metropolitan Area Branch of 

the Commissioned Officers Association 

(DC-COA). LCDR Samantha Fontenelle 

has organized and coordinated the CAFB 

volunteer activity for the past several 

years. PHS Officers’ efforts have complimented 

those of other volunteers to 

help save the CAFB thousands of dollars 

each year, while having a significant impact 

on hunger in the DC metro area. 

Hunger and its Impact on Health 

Hunger is a significant problem for many 

people in the DC area. From 2006-2008, 

the U.S. Census estimated more than 

640,000 DC area residents were at risk 

of being hungry, 200,000 of them being 

children. The recent study “Hunger in 

America 2010” reported that more than 

478,100 people, including 224,707 children, 

receive emergency food each year through 

the CAFB and its network of 700 partner 

agencies. An estimated 88,400 people receive 

emergency food assistance each week 

from a food pantry, soup kitchen, or other 

agency served by the CAFB – 19,000 more 

than four years ago (CAFB, 2010). i 

People affected by hunger are not just 

the poor; they include working families, 

children, and the elderly. They must frequently 

choose between buying groceries 

and paying for their living expenses. 

More than 50 % of people receiving food 

assistance have jobs, a sobering statistic. 

Hunger adversely impacts public health 

and our communities: children who 

suffer from hunger have a diminished 

capacity to learn; adults can’t work as 

effectively; and seniors are more prone to 

illness. Ultimately, those affected daily by 

hunger are unable to live to their fullest 

potential and contribute their ideas, energy, 

and talents to their communities. 

Capital Area Food Bank’s Mission 

The CAFB will celebrate its 30th anniversary 

this year, a major milestone 

for a program that was intended as a 

temporary measure. The CAFB began 

on Martin Luther King, Jr.’s birthday in 

1980 as a response to a weak economy 

and cuts in the Food Stamp Program. 

Since opening its doors, the community’s 

need for the CAFB has grown tremendously 

as more and more residents have 

been impacted by hunger. Today, the 

CAFB is the largest, public nonprofit food 

and nutrition resource in the DC area. 

Each year, the organization distributes 

over 28 million pounds of food, including 

produce. Through a network of 700 

partner agencies, including soup kitchens, 

homeless shelters, low-income housing 

communities, day care centers, elder care 

facilities, youth programs and faith-based 

organizations. Nearly 100,000 people 

benefit from these efforts each week. 

The mission of the CAFB is not only to 

distribute food, but to educate, empower, 

and enlighten the community on issues 

of hunger and nutrition. The CAFB also 

accomplishes its mission to help fight 

hunger in the DC metro area, through 

volunteer support and donations. More 

than 12,000 volunteers annually support 

the organization’s efforts, saving it over 

$729,000 in staffing costs. The CAFB 

then channels the savings back into the 

program to feed the community. 

Fighting Hunger a Positive 

Experience for Corps Officers 

The experience had a profound impact 

on the PHS volunteers. “I was surprised 

to learn how many children face hunger,” 

reported LCDR Melaine Shin, from the 

FDA’s Office of Generic Drugs. “But 

it was great to see these volunteering 

activities coordinated by PHS, which 

provides officers an opportunity to participate 

in community outreach efforts. It 

was a very rewarding experience for me 

personally and I look forward to volunteering 

again in the near future.” 

Other volunteers noted the camaraderie 

among PHS officers working together 

for a common cause. “It was a great way 

to volunteer my time for a good cause 

and a wonderful way to meet other 

officers in the DC area,” said LTJG 

Samantha Spindel, from the FDA’s 

Center for Devices and Radiological 

Health. “I am looking forward to my 

first deployment so I can experience the 

PHS spirit, dedication, and hard work in 

action during a national emergency.” 

The spirit of PHS was on display by the 

officers who volunteered at the Capital 

Area Food Bank. They took another step 

in advancing the mission of the U.S. 

Public Health Service Commissioned 

Corps to protect, promote, and advance 

the health and safety of our nation. 

The time spent at the CAFB not only 

provided a sense of personal enrichment 

that often comes with helping others, 

it also engendered a broader awareness 

of the sometimes seemingly invisible 

hunger problem in this country and its 

inter-relationship with public health. 

The DC-COA Officers expressed their 

thanks and gratitude to the staff of the 

CAFB with a coin ceremony, recognizing 

all that they do to help to fight hunger 

in the DC metro area. The Officers 

also expressed their continued commitment 

to volunteering at the CAFB and 

recognized LCDR Samantha Fontenelle, 

who has organized and coordinated this 

activity for the past several years. The 

CAFB staff and the PHS organizers 

thanked all the PHS Officers who volunteered 

and made the event a success. 

i 

Capital Area Foodbank (CAFB). 2010. Press Release 

– Landmark New Study Reveals 25 percent increase 

in Washington metro area residents seeking emergency 

food assistance. 

By LCDR Beverly Weitzman & 

LCDR Samantha Fontenelle 

Reviewers: LCDR Sara Anderson & 

LCDR Christine Merenda 

october 2010 | Frontline 

3

COA BRANCH 

DC-COA 

3 rd Annual Golf Tournament 

Everyone who participated in the tournament received a 

complimentary sleeve of golf balls adorned with the PHS 

Commissioned Officers Foundation logo. Tournament chairperson 

LT David Schwab was assisted by Co-Chair LCDR 

David Bruno and volunteer LT Renee Pleasanton on the day 

of the tournament. 

(L to R) LT David Schwab, Jon Rhodes (FedFinancial Federal 

Credit Union), LCDR David Bruno, LT Renee Pleasanton 

The 3rd Annual DC-COA golf tournament had a new 

home in 2010 at the Hampshire Greens Golf Course in 

Silver Spring, MD. The event drew over 80 golfers whose 

contributions generated a profit of over $2,000 for the 

Commissioned Officers Foundation. 

Following the initial check-in/registration, golfers were 

greeted by a light breakfast of coffee and donuts and an 

opportunity to purchase raffle tickets, mulligans and PHS 

merchandise. While LT Schwab played in this year’s tournament, 

LCDR Bruno and LT Pleasanton ran a putting contest 

and took group photos. The day ended with a barbeque lunch 

and the awarding of prizes for the top three groups and 

winners of the closest to the pin, longest drive and the putting 

contest, not to mention numerous raffle prize drawings. 

The tournament saw its first repeat winners as the group of 

Joshua Hardin, Matt Harps, Billy Pershin, and Bryan Queen 

turned in an impressive 16 under par. 

The tournament has seen a steady increase in participation 

and the committee is looking forward to an even bigger tournament 

next Fall! 

**** IMPORTANT MESSAGE ***** 

TO: BRANCH MEMBERS 

FROM: NATIONAL COA 

If you are currently affiliated with one of the following local branches, PLEASE READ!!!!!!! 

ARCTIC 

CATAWBA 

CENTRAL FLORIDA 

CENTRAL TEXAS 

MIAMI 

Recently, National COA completed a review of the above-listed local COA branches. The review reflects that, unfortunately, 

these local branches may have effectively ceased to exist. 

National COA has received no response from the Branch President (or other officers) for more than one year, resulting in a lack 

of communication with these branches as current information has not been made available. National COA seeks to encourage all 

local branches to be actively engaged and involved as a means of strengthening the voice of all National COA members. 

We appreciate the time involved in establishing and maintaining a local branch by local branch officers, and also recognize the 

efforts and involvement from active branch members. If an attempt to revitalize the branch and activity is to no avail, the dissolution 

of the branch will be addressed immediately. ONLY ONE REPRESENTATIVE from each branch should contact 

the Membership Coordinator, Malissa Spalding, at mspalding@coausphs.org by November 30, 2010 to advise 

of the Branch’s status. If no contact is made prior to the above deadline, National COA will proceed with dissolving 

the local branch. 


COA Member Helps fellow Commissioned Officers 

with Exercise, Fitness and Nutrition 

CAPT Belsito running into the stadium at the Masters 

World Games in Australia with her gold medal! 

National COA Member, CAPT 

Linda Jo Belsito, began lifting 

weights as a form of stress management 

while in nursing school. She was 

coached by one of the top strength 

trainers in New York, Dr. Ken 

Leistner. He told her, “If you put in the 

time you will be a World Champion.” 

She wanted to prove him right! 

CAPT Belsito won her seventh 

Powerlifting World Title in 1998, 

totaling 1106 lbs between three lifts; 

squat, bench press, and deadlift. Her 

best lifts are a 440 lb squat, a 231 lb 

bench press and a 231 lb deadlift. After 

this event, she decided she was going 

to set her sights on learning Olympic 

Weightlifting. This was going to be a 

challenge since Olympic Weightlifting 

was a much different sport than what she 

was used to. It consists of two lifts; the 

“Snatch,” lift a barbell from the platform 

to locked arms overhead in a smooth 

continuous movement, and the “Clean 

and Jerk,” pulling the weight from the 

floor to a racked position across deltoids 

and clavicles, then the bar would be 

moved up the torso until it reached the 

position for the overhead jerk. 

CAPT Belsito succeeded, and she 

captured her fifth Masters Olympic 

Weightlifting Gold Medal at the 

October 2009 Masters World Games 

in Sydney, Australia. The Masters 

World Games hosted over 25,000 

athletes, including all 

of the sports represented 

at the summer 

Olympic Games. This 

was the second time 

she competed at this 

specific competition. 

She also competed in 

the July 2005 Masters 

World Games in 

Canada bringing home 

the Gold as well, and 

setting world records 

in her age group and 

weight class. Her best “Snatch” and 

“Clean and Jerk” are 143 lbs and 181.5 

lbs respectively. 

She is sought after by many as a coach 

and a mentor in the area of exercise, 

fitness and nutrition. Since coming into 

the Corps, she has been called upon to 

assist fellow Commissioned Officers 

to get ready for their physical fitness 

test (PFT). She has assisted men and 

women with showing them proper 

technique for push ups, sit ups and have 

encouraged many to complete the PFT. 

Everyone she has worked with has done 

well and has set the bar high for them 

to do better the next time. 

She is a certified weightlifting coach, as 

she currently is a volunteer coach for 

young athletes, and most recently has been 

recruited in coaching the Special Olympic 

Powerlifting Team for Montgomery 

County, MD. They will compete in 

Maryland on October 23, 2010. 

She is currently training for the tenmile 

Army run, which takes place on 

October 24, 2010. This has been a much 

different training cycle than she is used 

to, but she says, “It is good to do different 

things and it is great to be with 

the team of USPHS officers running to 

support the Warriors.” 


CAPT Belsito expressed that she “enjoys 

giving back to charities, and will walk, 

run, or lift to raise money for a great 

cause, and has tried to participate in any 

event which the USPHS has participated 

in. As a coach, it gives me no greater joy 

than to see an athlete do something they 

never thought they could do, I have been 

there, and I know the feeling.” 

She tries to encourage everyone to at 

least make the attempt to get started 

in some form of exercise, to think of 

their future and the ability to be mobile 

when you are older. Our society has an 

obesity epidemic, and she has realized 

that this issue is too big for her to fix 

alone. But what if she can encourage 

at least one person everyday? She is 

currently assigned to the FDA, and is 

participating in the Healthy Lifestyles 

Workgroup and has contributed fitness 

tips to the newly created monthly newsletter 

for the branch DEMO Dispatch. 

CAPT Belsito says, “This is my passion, 

as a Nurse, with a Health Education 

A.S. degree, Public Health Officer, I 

use every opportunity to work with my 

community, to teach and educate on the 

childhood obesity epidemic, exercise, 

fitness, and have become an advocate 

for Mrs. Obama, Let’s Move Campaign, 

and the Surgeon Generals’ and HHS 

Healthy Lifestyles initiatives. I have 

also just received the Platinum Award 

for the Presidents Challenge! Are you 

working on yours?” 

5

2010 Operation Arctic Care 

LTJG Burbage applies fluoride 

varnish during Operation Arctic 

Care 2010 

United States Public Health Service 

(USPHS) officer, LTJG Katrina 

Burbage, had the privilege of deploying 

to Operation Arctic Care (AC) 2010. 

LTJG Burbage, an Environmental 

Health Officer, currently assigned 

to the Alaska Native Tribal Health 

Consortium in Anchorage, AK was 

attached to a team from the U.S. 

Army 994th Medical Detachment 

Veterinary Services (MED DET VS) 

from Round Rock, TX. As the largest 

recurring joint services medical readiness 

and logistics training exercise, 

AC is sponsored by the Innovative 

Readiness Program, under the Office of 

the Assistant Secretary of Defense for 

Reserve Affairs. The operation provides 

humanitarian assistance to underserved 

American Indians and Alaska Natives. 

AC 2010 was led by the U.S. Air Force 

Reserve and was supported by airmen, 

soldiers, sailors, a USPHS officer and 

an Environmental Health Specialist 

from the Yukon Kuskokwim Health 

Corporation. For two weeks in April, 

the joint-interagency, medical, dental 

and veterinary services provided much 

needed care to twelve remote Alaskan 

villages within the Northwest Arctic 

Borough region, located 32 miles above 

the Arctic Circle. The land size of the 

Northwest Arctic Borough’s is about 

the size of Indiana. 

Medical and dental services, though 

available, require a person to travel 75- 

150 miles to the hospital in the hub community 

of Kotzebue. Travel is expensive 

and often dangerous in this land where 

wind-chills regularly reach 40-50º below 

zero. There is no road system; travel is 

limited to small aircraft, boats and All 

Terrain Vehicles such as 4-wheelers 

and snow machines. Veterinary services 

are non-existent. Delivering this level 

of care at the local level is invaluable in 

such an isolated environment. 

Five teams from the 994th MED DET 

VS were comprised of approximately 

seven individuals and were transported 

between villages via Army National 

Guard UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters 

to deliver veterinary care. LTJG 

Burbage was actively involved in a 

diverse range of activities. She assisted 

the vet teams in administering rabies 

vaccine to hundreds of animals. Rabies 

is enzootic in foxes in Alaska; providing 

rabies vaccine to pets is imperative in 

protecting humans from the virus. 

LTJG Burbage teamed with the Air 

Force Reserve Public Health Officer, 

and provided public health education 

in the schools on dog bite prevention, 

rabies control, the importance of hand 

washing, and food safety. More than 50 

classes were conducted with over 400 

attendees. 

Additionally, LTJG Burbage had the 

opportunity to be trained in fluoride 

application. She teamed with Air Force 

dental hygienists to apply fluoride 

varnish treatments to children’s teeth in 

the local schools. Many remote villages 

lack direct dental services. Preventive 

dental care is critical in these remote areas 

where the prevalence of oral disease 

is the highest in the nation. 

AC 2010 offered a unique opportunity 

and experience for all who participated. 

LTJG Burbage, said, “it was an honor 

to work alongside so many men and 

women from the other services in a 

public health effort. Their professionalism 

was evident in all that they did, and 

I am thankful to have been a part of it.” 

AC 2010 provided services in an area 

of much need, and the residents greatly 

benefited from them. Operation AC 

is in its sixteenth year. This year 263 

military personnel participated. 


LEGISLATIVE UPDATE continued... 

And then it all fell apart. The Senate’s 

version of the NDAA was expected 

to come up for a vote on Tuesday, 

September 14. That did not happen. 

Instead, S. 3454 fell victim to a 

threatened Republican filibuster over 

two controversial issues: repeal of the 

Defense Department’s “Don’t ask, don’t 

tell policy,” and the Senate leadership’s 

last-minute inclusion of an unrelated 

immigration provision. 

The NDAA cannot be revisited until 

after the elections, during the so-called 

lame-duck session. It is not clear when, 

BookShelf 

As COA continues to 

ramp up its own publishing 

activities, we are 

bringing back an occasional 

Frontline feature called 

BookShelf. From time to 

time, in this space, we will 

take notice of recent books written by 

COA members. BookShelf is open to fiction 

as well as non-fiction books, to trade 

book publishers and the academic press. 

The only requirement is that authors 

must be COA members. 

First up: And Evil Shall Come, by CAPT 

Paul D. Ellner, (Ret.). The novel is fastpaced 

and “ripped from the headlines.” 

I happened to write this notice on the 

morning the alleged perpetrator of the 

Ft. Hood massacre was scheduled to go 

on trial (his trial was delayed minutes 

after it began). It was also exactly nine 

years after the string of deadly anthraxlaced 

letters came to light. 

CAPT Ellner, a long-time COA member 

and Inactive Reserve officer in the 

PHS Commissioned Corps, draws on 

his knowledge of the horrific effects of 

biological agents as weapons of mass 

destruction. The book is a fast read, with 

the unsettling yet compelling elements 

one expects in a thriller: A secret Al 

Qaeda camp determined to carry out biological 

attacks around the world. Sinister 

U.S. Army officials claiming ignorance. 

A foiled attack on Washington, D.C. A 

corrupt and criminal U.S. Senator. A 

or even if, it will be taken up again 

before the end of the year. If the 

NDAA is not revisited until the next 

Congress, it could be reintroduced as 

is, or rewritten by the committees of 

jurisdiction. 

Meanwhile, supporters of TRICARE 

26 are pursuing an alternate path. 

COA advises interested PHS officers 

to communicate with their own U.S. 

Senators and to keep COA in the loop. 

—Judith Rensberger 

female investigative reporter wannabe 

who is kidnapped and threatened with 

beheading. An anthrax attack in New 

York that kills thousands. A bomb in 

Grand Central Station. 

CAPT Ellner has written several nonfiction 

books, including The Biomedical 

Scientist as Expert Witness, which we 

noted in BookShelf in February, 2006, 

and Understanding Infectious Disease. 

He helped establish Disaster Medical 

Assistance Teams (D-MATs). CAPT 

Ellner has taught microbiology and 

pathology at Columbia University’s 

College of Physicians and Surgeons. In 

retirement, he writes novels and short 

stories. And Evil Shall Come is his latest. 

The book is available as a soft-cover 

from Amazon and Barnes and Noble. I 

ordered my copy from Barnes and Noble 

for $14.35. It is available online as an 

e-book from BookLocker. Visit http:// 

booklocker.com/books/4744.html. 

To propose a book for mention in 

BookShelf, please send title and ordering 

information to me at jrensberger@ 

coausphs.org. 

—Judith Rensberger 

Military Coalition 

Honors Key 

Lawmakers, 

Staffers 

On Sept. 29, The Military 

Coalition (TMC) presented its 

highest awards to two legislators and 

two Congressional staff members 

who have championed legislative improvements 

for military families. 

Senate Veterans Affairs Committee 

Chairman Daniel Akaka (D-HI) was 

presented the TMC Award of Merit 

for his leadership in winning enactment 

of legislation to provide benefits and 

services to caregivers of wounded warriors 

and female veterans, and for sponsoring 

legislation to improve post-9/11 

GI Bill coverage. Sen. Akaka’s proposed 

improvements included extending Post- 

9/11 GI Bill transferability to the PHS 


House Armed Services Committee 

Chairman Ike Skelton (D-MO) was 

honored for his leadership in supporting 

military pay comparability with 

the private sector, military health care 

and wounded warrior improvements, 

and his efforts to ease compensation 

inequities affecting disabled retirees and 

military survivors. 

TMC also presented its annual 

Freedom Awards to Ms. Kim Lipsky, 

Deputy Staff Director for the Senate 

Veterans Affairs Committee, and Mr. 

Jacob Parker, Legislative Assistant for 

Rep. Tom Latham. They were recognized 

for their behind-the-scenes work 

in promoting quality of life programs 

for service personnel and veterans. 

Source: www.moaa.org 


7

Caring & Curing: A History of the Indian Health Service 


Chair’s Corner 

Be a Mentor! 

Fifty years 

ago, on 

October 13, 1960, 

Bill Mazeroski, 

second baseman 

for the Pittsburgh 

Pirates, found 

himself up to bat. 

And not just any 

CAPT Dan Hickey 

at-bat! We are talking World Series, 

Game 7, Bottom of the Ninth, scored 

tied 9 - 9 against the steamroller from 

New York – the invincible Yankees 

of Roger Maris and Mickey Mantle, 

Whitey Ford and Yogi Berra. Known 

for his impeccable defensive play, only a 

.260 career hitter, Maz will be forever 

remembered for a swing of the bat at 

3:36 p.m. on that warm October afternoon. 

He took the first pitch for a ball. 

Yankees hurler Ralph Terry next delivered 

a high slider that, in the words 

of one sportswriter, “didn’t slide.” Maz 

jumped on the pitch and sent it sailing 

over the left field wall as Yankee outfield 

Berra watched in stunned disbelief. 

It was and is the only Game 7 in World 

Series history decided by a home run. 

Many believe it remains the greatest 

moment in baseball’s storied lore. 

A few weeks ago I had the pleasure 

of attending the dedication of the 

Mazeroski statue outside PNC Park in 

Pittsburgh. His statuary image joins 

the likes of Hall of Famers Roberto 

Clemente, Willie Stargell, and Honus 

Wagner outside the ballpark, and is a 

freeze-frame of his ecstatic romp around 

the bases, a moment of unabashed joy 

from a humble man who rarely displayed 

great emotion. The Pittsburgh Pirates 

honored Maz with a celebratory unveiling 

and dedication of the statue, and he 

was joined by family, teammates from the 

1960 championship team, friends, Pirates 

brass, and a legion of fans. 

After several speeches from local 

dignitaries, Pirate management, and 

teammates, this man who shies away 

from the spotlight composed himself to 

address his appreciative audience. His 

words caught my ear, for his presentation 

could have been entitled “My 

Mentors” and were, I believe, applicable 

to our Corps. Maz expounded on how 

his career never would have occurred 

had it not been for “the important mentors” 

(his words) who guided, encouraged, 

and challenged him throughout 

his early days. He related that the foundation 

of his accomplishments could be 

traced to his father. A gifted athlete in 

his own right, his coal miner father was 

injured in an industrial accident and lost 

part of his right foot; Lew Mazeroski’s 

athletic career was over. But the father 

never lost his love of the game, and 

when the son inherited both that love 

and skill, he cultivated his son’s talents 

and encouraged him at every step. Maz 

also thanked the other mentors of his 

youth: high school teachers and coaches, 

minor league instructors, seasoned 

Pirate veterans. He said as a young man 

they “owned” him. 

Interesting concept, I thought. What 

could be more important for our Corps 

than to take ownership of our Junior 

Officers? I recall my initial call to active 

duty into the National Health Service 

Corps. Assigned to a community health 

center in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula in 

Region 5, I was fortunate to have CAPT 

William Hall, (Ret.) as my CO. He was 

an exemplary officer, outstanding role 

model, Corps to the core, and most 

important, a superb mentor. As a public 

health rookie stationed on the isolated 

Bay Mills Indian Community on the 

southern shore of Lake Superior’s 

Whitefish Bay, I picked his brain repeatedly 

for his clinical, managerial and 

administrative expertise, and when the 

road was rocky, I had a sympathetic ear 

and rock-solid support. Career counseling 

was given freely, as was the art of 

negotiating the PHS support services. 

Professional development was strongly 

encouraged and clinical excellence was 

demanded. We traded fishing tips and 

fly patterns; argued the college football 

rankings; and discussed the current hot 

topics in dentistry. Most crucial, I knew 

that no matter what, CAPT Hall had 

my back. From the very beginning of 

my Corps career, he let me know - any 

problem, at any time - he was there to 

help and his door was always open. 

Years later I had the opportunity to 

share a dinner with CAPT Hall in 

Chicago. I mentioned his immense 

influence on my life, and asked him 

how I could thank him. “Well Dan,” 

he said, “maybe when you have a few 

more gray hairs you can help a Junior 

Officer along the way.” Indeed, from the 

moment I first met him, CAPT Hall’s 

actions imbued in me a sense of obligation 

to return the favor he granted me, 

and to actively seek out, assist, encourage, 

and mentor younger officers as 

they begin their careers in our Public 

Health Service. 

Through my PHS years I have encountered 

many dedicated and inspirational 

senior officers who have guided me, and 

count many deep and fruitful friendships. 

As I look back, it all started with CAPT 

Bill Hall. The standard he held high resonates 

with me to this day: Be a Mentor! 

Retirement from pg. 1 

Best, 

CAPT Dan Hickey 

USPHS, COA Board Chair 

his work in the White House following 

Hurricane Katrina, through his 

service as Acting Surgeon General. 

He is a model officer and patriot - a 

leader’s leader. We echo the words in 

his retirement message to his fellow officers 

“your spirit of service must remain 

constant...Your unity of purpose and commitment 

to the public trust will enable you 

to overcome any ephemeral difficulties this 

transition may impose.” 

The Corps will go on, no one person is 

indispensable. But RADM Rutstein’s 

departure will be a sad day for the 

Commissioned Corps and the nation’s 

public health. COA extends our best 

wishes to Admiral Rutstein and Gayle 

for fair winds and following seas. We 

look forward to the Admiral’s continuing 

close affiliation with the Commissioned 

Officers Association and Foundation. 


9

PHS Officers and Civil Service Employees Working 

Together in Quality Management at FCC Butner, NC 

Quality Management Dept at FCC 

Butner – (L to R): Cheryl Daniel, LPN, 

HSS, CAPT Gracie Bumpass-Gentry, 

RN, MPA, Susan Tuck, HSS and LCDR 

Yvonne Lassiter Murphy, RN, MHA 

Chances are you’ve seen several 

staff members in your areas looking 

through charts. These ladies are 

Health Systems Specialist in the Quality 

Management Department at FCC 

Butner. The department is headed by 

CAPT Gracie Bumpass-Gentry, MPA, 

RN, and Chief of Quality Management. 

CAPT Bumpass-Gentry has the overall 

responsibility of ensuring the quality 

of care across the complex is appropriately 

and continuously maintained. 

This must be done in order for us to 

keep our esteemed Joint Commission 

Accreditation. 

Quality Management staff includes: 

Susan Tuck, Cheryl Daniel, LPN 

and LCDR Yvonne Lassiter Murphy, 

MHA, RN. 

Auditing charts is just one of the tasks 

assigned to the QM staff members. 

They do so much more to improve the 

overall performance at FCC Butner. 

The primary methodology utilized to 

improve performance is the PDCA approach 

(Plan, Do, Check, Act). Planning 

includes studying a process, deciding 

what could improve it, and identifying 

data to collect. Doing includes carrying 

out that plan. Checking includes evaluating 

the results of the data, and acting 

includes fully implementing the plan if 

applicable. 

Another task assigned to the QM department 

is analyzing or investigating 

Sentinel Events. A Sentinel Event is an 

event which has resulted in an unanticipated 

death, rape, hemolytic transfusion 

reaction involving administration 

of blood, surgery on the wrong patient 

or wrong body part, and suicide of a 

patient in a setting where he receives 

24 hour care. 

National Performance Measures are 

also monitored and reported to Central 

Office biannually. The measures 

monitored are the management of: hypertension, 

lipid levels (LDL), diabetes 

(Hbg A1C), HIV/RNA levels, completion 

of Isoniazid treatment, and asthma 

related hospitalizations or mortalities. 

FCC Butner is one of the primary 

Medical Referral Centers for the Bureau 

of Prisons. We are the Center for excellence 

in Diabetes, Rehabilitation Services, 

and Oncology. Due to the Oncology 

mission, all Federal inmates requiring 

extensive medical care for the progression 

of their cancer are sent to FCC 

Butner. In 2009, 84 of the 141 deaths 

at FCC Butner were cancer related. 

The Quality Management Department 

assists in Mortality Reviews. These 

reviews establish a multilevel system of 

reporting and reviewing every inmate 

death. Once finalized locally, it’s sent to 

Central Office for review. 

We enjoy our jobs immensely, and look 

forward to working with all staff at 

FCC Butner to continuously improve 

the quality of care and maintaining our 

Joint Commission Accreditation. 

Submitted By LCDR Yvonne Lassiter 

Murphy, Program Management Officer 

Federal Bureau of Prisons in Butner, NC 

Recognition Ceremony for 

the 1st Three RADM Jerrold 

M. Michael Fellows 

On Friday, October 1, 2010, the PHS Commissioned 

Officers Foundation joined in on the recognition ceremony 

for the graduation of the first three RADM Jerrold 

M. Michael Fellows from the University of Maryland 

School of Public Health. They received a Graduate 

Certificate in Global Health. 

(L to R) RADM Dushanka Kleinman, (Ret.), Associate Dean; 

RADM Jerrold M. Michael, (Ret.), COF Board Member; Brian 

McSheffrey, COF Development Director; LT QuynhNhu 

Nguyen, Graduate Certificate Recipient; LT Allen Magtibay, 

Current Michael Fellow; LCDR Jill Hammond, Graduate 

Certificate Recipient; CAPT Bruce Chelikowsky, (Ret.), 

COF Board Member. Not pictured: LCDR Varsha Savalia, 

Graduate Certificate Recipient; LT Kristen Hardin, Current 

Michael Fellow 


welcome 

NEW MEMBERS 

LTJG Oladeji A. Ajani, North Carolina 

LT Amy J. Alvis, South Texas 

LT Francine A. Barnett, Columbus 

LT Lacey K. Blankenship, Unaffiliated 

LCDR Jabal Chase, Atlanta 

LCDR Sidney B. Daniel, Jr., 

Northeast Oklahoma 

LCDR Tara S. Daugereau, 

Central Texas 

LT Sabrina DeBose, Atlanta 

LT Phong D. Do, Unaffiliated 

LT Allison K. Gallen, Aurora Borealis 

LT Alfredo Garcia, Ft. Worth 

LT Valarie T. Gardner, Columbus 

LCDR Eduardo Gomez-Saladin, 

Unaffiliated 

LT Philip T. Gorz, Bemidji 

LT Malaysia H. Gresham, Unaffiliated 

LCDR Craig Hales, Atlanta 

LT Lakeisha W. Hicks, North Carolina 

LTJG Candis M. Hunter, Atlanta 

LCDR Mark M. Iseri, Mt. Adams 

LTJG Victoria L. Johnson, 

North Carolina 

LT Frank J. Koch, New England 

LCDR Cynthia Long, Unaffiliated 

LT Allison H. Longenberger, 

Unaffiliated 

LCDR Mark Morgan, Unaffiliated 

LT Matthew J. Morrison, 

Heart of America 

LT Luz E. Rivera, Phoenix 

LCDR Josef F. Rivero, North Carolina 

LT Hobart L. Rogers, Jr., Unaffiliated 

LT Aaron Ross, Unaffiliated 

LT Tyler M. Sharp, Puerto Rico 

LT James G. Sims, Four Corners 

LTJG Dereck Smith, Central Florida 

LT Jacinta Smith, Atlanta 

LTJG Seneca M. Smith, Unaffiliated 

LTJG Maria A. Tharakan, SoCal 

LT Trang Q. Tran, 

Montgomery County 

Minority Officers Liaison Council 

Celebrates 20th Anniversary 

Health Disparities Symposium 

To address one of Surgeon General’s 

priorities- “to eliminate health disparities 

in our nation” - the Minority Officers 

Liaison Council (MOLC) is planning 

to celebrate its 20th Anniversary by 

hosting a one-day symposium on health 

disparities. The purpose of this event is 

to promote awareness of federal, state 

and local initiatives in the elimination 

of health disparities and to highlight 

the role of USPHS and other entities 

to public health organizations in this 

important effort. 

The symposium will be held on 

December 10, 2010 from 0900 to 1600 

at the Reyes Building, 4th Floor Reyes 

Conference Room, 801 Thompson 

Avenue, Rockville, MD 20852. 

The event will be free of charge and 

lunch will be provided. The symposium 

will be open to government staff, 

PHS officers, and state and local public 

health community leaders. 

The symposium will consist of presentations 

and panel discussions highlighting 

state-of-the-art approaches to 

address the elimination of health disparities. 

Among the proposed topics for 

the symposium include the following: 

• Patient Protection and Affordable 

Care Act – Implications for 

Eliminating Health Disparities 

• National Partnership for Action to 

End Health Disparities 

• Effects of the Economic Downturn on 

the Health of Communities of Color 

• Health Disparities of American 

Indians/Alaska Natives 

• Elimination of Health Disparities in 

the Healthcare Workforce 

• Overcoming Cancer Health Disparities 

• Eliminating Health Disparities: 

Tribal, Federal, State/Local Health 

Department, and Community Initiatives 

Please RSVP to LT Karen Ho at 

karen.ho@ahrq.hhs.gov by 

November 30, 2010. 

For additional information regarding 

the symposium agenda, please visit 

MOLC website at 

http://molcusphs.org/ for updates. 


Senior Officer 

Retirements – 

A Trend? 

COA cannot help but notice what 

appears to be an increasing 

exodus of senior leaders from the 

Corps in the last few months. In addition 

to Rear Admirals Bob Williams’ 

and David Rutstein’s retirements as 

reported elsewhere, RADMs Vince 

Berkeley, Rich Rubendall, and Van 

Hubbard have also recently retired 

and newly appointed acting Deputy 

Surgeon General, Captain Carol 

Romano will retire on 1 November. 

COA is attempting to confirm the 

pending retirements of at least four 

more PHS flag officers. 

While each individual officer has his 

or her own reason for electing to 

retire, the coincidence of so many 

within a few months time has raised 

questions among rank and file officers. 

The loss of much talent, experience, 

and leadership for the Corps is 

certainly of concern. While all of the 

retiring officers are certain to continue 

their service to the nation’s public 

health in some other capacity; their 

loss to the PHS Commissioned Corps 

will be felt for quite some time. 

The good news is that there is an 

extraordinarily talented generation of 

captains and commanders more than 

fully qualified, ready and eager to be 

given their opportunity for promotion 

into senior leadership positions. We 

can only hope that these fine officers 

are quickly given their chance to serve 

the Corps and public health in assignments 

of increased responsibility. 

COA extends our best wishes for the 

future to all retiring officers. 

11

PHS COMMISSIONED OFFICERS FOUNDATION 

donations received august 25 to september 27, 2010 

ACKNOWLEDGING... 

Visit us on the web 

www.phscof.org 

Platinum 

District of Columbia COA Branch * 

Gold 

CDR William N. Albrecht ** 

Silver 

Greater LA COA Branch* 

CAPT Linda M. Brown, (Ret.) 

CAPT Arvo B. Ederma, (Ret.) 

Bronze 

CAPT Loretta A. Coughlin, (Ret.) 

CAPT M. Elizabeth Dickey, (Ret.) 

CAPT Gregory J. Glahn, (Ret.) 

CAPT Louis Levy, (Ret.) *** 

CAPT Tommy L. Mosely, (Ret.) 

CAPT Jack C. Robertson, (Ret.) 

CAPT John A. Vaillancourt, (Ret.) 

Friends 

LCDR Harlem J. Gunness 

CAPT Lorenzo G. Guzman, (Ret.) 

CAPT Malcolm B. Reddoch, (Ret.) 

* COF Scholarship Program 

** RADM Jerrold M. Michael, (Ret.) 

Fellowship Program 

*** In Memory of CAPT John M. Vogel, (Ret.) 

Club 159 Members 

Gold 

CAPT Martin I. Goldenberg, (Ret.) 

CAPT Peter I. Hartsock 

Silver 

CAPT Steve Gurski, III 

Bronze 

CAPT Carl Ellison, (Ret.) 

CAPT Stewart L. Jorgensen 

Mr. Michael D. Terry 

LCDR Jacob H. Wamsley, III 

LT William A. Zarychta 

Donations Can 

be Made at 

Several Levels: 

Leadership Society $10,000 

President’s Society $5,000 

Founder’s Society $2,500 

Platinum $1,000 

Gold $500 

Silver $250 

Bronze $100 

phs commissioned officers foundation 

FOR THE ADVANCEMENT OF PUBLIC HEALTH 

*Enclosed is my contribution 

yes, I would like to help! 

Please make checks payable to “PHS Commissioned Officers Foundation” or 

provide credit card information below 

Amount: 

$_____________________________________________ 

Type of credit card: 

*MasterCard 

*Visa 

*American Express 

*Discover 

Mail to: 

PHS Commissioned Officers 

Foundation for the Advancement 

of Public Health 

8201 Corporate Drive, Suite 200 

Landover, MD 20785 

Card Number: ______________________________________________ 

Name on Card: ______________________________________________ 

Expiration Date: ______________________________________________ 

Signature: ______________________________________________ 

Name: 

______________________________________________ 

Organization: ______________________________________________ 

Mailing Address: ______________________________________________ 

______________________________________________ 

City: ______________ State: _______ Zip: ______________________ 

Phone:______________________ Fax: _____________________________ 

Email: __________________________________________________________ 


JOIN Club 159 

Club 159 is a means to help the Foundation 

achieve its Capital Fund goals. 

The PHS Commissioned Officers 

Foundation for the Advancement of Public 

Health (COF ) has made a policy judgment 

to place a high priority on identifying 

the broad future educational needs 

of our Corps officers and is taking the 

appropriate beginning steps toward 

making resources available to support 

that commitment. 

To provide an instrument to fund this goal, 

the Board of Trustees for the Foundation 

has established The Capital Fund. 

The Board of Trustees has established 

a goal to raise $1,000,000. The Capital 

Fund will enable COF to apply resources 

derived from other sources to further 

develop and expand its other programmatic 

educational activities including 

the annual PHS Scientific and Training 

Symposium; publication of literature 

pertinent to the PHS Commissioned 

Corps and other public health topics; 

and provision of public health consulting 

services and training. 

The goal of $1,000,000 may seem somewhat 

daunting; however, if you consider 

that if each officer in the Corps were 

to donate a mere $159 the goal is easily 

attainable. Therefore, we have created 

Club 159. Officers donating at least $159 

to the Capital Fund will be enrolled in the 

newly established club. Benefits, other than 

donations being fully tax-deductible for 

income tax purposes and having the names 

of new members listed in Frontline are still 

being determined. There is a limited time 

opportunity for you to be a Plank Owner 

in Club 159. An individual who was a 

member of the crew of a ship when that 

ship was placed in commission is referred 

to as a “Plank Owner.” Any donation of 

$159 or more (slightly more than the cost 

of visiting Starbucks for a venti caramel 

macchiato once a day for a month) made 

to the Capital Fund before June 30, 2011, 

will entitle the member to be considered a 

Plank Owner and will be issued a certificate 

suitable for framing. Donations of 

more than $159 could earn you a place in 

the Distinguished Members Ring in Club 159. 

Contact Brian F. McSheffrey, Director 

of Development at 301-731-9080 or 

bmcsheffrey@coausphs.org for further 

information on the Capital Fund. 

Public Health 

Reports 

Readership 

Survey 

Public Health Reports, the official 

journal of the U.S. Public Health 

Service, serves as an informative 

and accessible resource for practitioners, 

professors, scholars and 

students of public health. The 

bi-monthly, peer-reviewed Journal 

provides important research and 

presents key discussions on the 

major issues confronting the public 

health community. 

They are interested in your opinion 

about the journal. Please take 

a few minutes to answer questions 

at: http://www.surveymonkey. 

com/s/GNNSXWY. 

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©2010 AGIA 25445 


13

FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR continued... 

The points made by Dr. Koh are contained 

in the “Executive Summary” 

slides made available to all Corps 

officers on the CCMIS website and 

announced in an email to the Corps 

just as our telephone call was ending 

at 4:35PM on the 12th. For those unable 

to access the password protected 

CCMIS webpage, we have posted the 

briefing notes on the COA website. 

Dr. Koh reported on the Office of 

Management and Budget (OMB) tasking 

for a management review, the process 

and players he directed to conduct 

that review, and the “findings” and 46 

recommendations developed by the review. 

The findings concluded by the review 

validate COA’s concerns expressed 

to Dr. Koh during that first meeting 

with him in March, 2009. The management 

review found a decentralized 

and complex organizational structure; 

operations spread across three different 

chains of command (actually more if 

you include the opdivs and agencies); 

fragmented and inconsistent enforcement 

of policies; “suboptimal” customer 

satisfaction; and more. 

Dr. Koh told me that he was taking immediate 

steps to address the key items. 

Among these first steps are streamlining 

the Corps’ administrative structure 

from 20 to 10 offices; unifying policy 

and operations under a single point 

of accountability (realigning OCCFM 

back under OSG); and establishing an 

advisory board to assist the ASH in 

Corps oversight. Anticipated outcomes 

include cost savings, more effective and 

efficient management for the Corps, and 

increased customer satisfaction. That’s 

all good news. 

The other news was that while these 

significant changes were to begin immediately, 

they are not expected to be complete 

until the spring of next year. That 

said, the recommended changes are complex 

and will take time to implement. 

VADM Benjamin echoed Dr. Koh’s 

comments and voiced her “complete 

agreement” with him. 

I began my comments by thanking 

Dr. Koh and VADM Benjamin for the 

courtesy extended to COA by the call. 

I remarked that COA would certainly 

agree with the major issues identified as 

things stood on March 23rd – the day 

the PPACA became law; but on that day 

there would have been only three issues. 

Subsequent actions to impose a “pause” 

on calls-to-duty have, in COA’s view, 

propelled that issue to the top of the 

list. I asked about the relationship of 

the “pause” to the management review; 

the reasons for the “pause”, and the 

steps necessary to have it lifted. 

Dr. Koh assured me that everyone in 

DHHS, from the top down, is working 

as hard as possible on getting the 

“pause” lifted and has been from the 

beginning. But my questions went 

mostly unanswered – topics for a future 

meeting. There was a suggestion that 

since the PPACA required all new accessions 

to be commissioned as Regular 

Corps officers – effective immediately 

upon the bill becoming law on March 

23rd – and that the required processes 

(DHHS submission of names to the 

White House for formal nomination 

to and confirmation by the Senate on 

a regular and recurring basis) did not 

exist, that this might somehow have 

caused the “pause.” 

I pointed out that the language in the 

PPACA regarding the Corps was unchanged 

in the almost year long process 

of congressional committee hearings. 

That language was publicly available 

and, in fact, was provided by me personally 

to DHHS on at least two occasions 

last year with a request to review and 

advise of any problems with implementation. 

No obstacles to implementation 

were identified. There may be inherent 

challenges in formulating plans and 

policies without legislation actually in 

place; but it is difficult to understand 

why such procedures are not in place 

almost seven months after the fact. 

My next question was related to the 

“pause” issue and had to do with reports 

from among the 450+ officers who 

have been commissioned since March 

23rd, but whose commissions required 

special presidential authority. Many of 

these new officers have asked COA to 

look into their eligibility for promotions 

in the next cycle. Apparently, some 

officers have been told that because of 

their special status they will not be able 

to qualify for promotions for which 

they would otherwise be eligible. The 

Surgeon General promised to inquire 

into the situation and get back to me. 

COA supports the planned reorganization 

aimed at streamlining Corps 

management and focusing the chainof-command 

and accountability. But I 

cautioned against over-enthusiastic and 

optimistic expectations of savings and 

improved efficiencies. The focus must be 

on improved effectiveness and efficiency 

first and on cost savings second. 

I asked Dr. Koh to provide more detail 

on the planned Commissioned Corps 

Advisory Board that will report to him. 

I was concerned that the idea was to 

simply replace the functions performed 

by OCCFM in the ASH’s office with yet 

another bureaucratic layer. He assured 

me that this is not the case; that the 

Advisory Board will be a senior executive 

group composed of many of the 

same officials convened to conduct the 

management review and may also include 

opdiv heads. The Advisory Board 

will function in just that capacity – 

providing advice to the ASH about the 

Corps – and not as yet another bureaucratic 

layer in the approval process. 

Dr. Koh concluded the call by once 

again stating his commitment to open 

communication with COA, encouraging 

me to call him directly whenever I 

had a question and that any requested 

meetings would be a priority for him. I 

remain impressed with, and convinced 

by Dr. Koh’s concern for and loyalty to 

the Corps. His dedication to improving 

transparency and communication 

as the Department moves forward to 

resolve Corps issues is exactly what is 

needed to reassure all officers of the 

Department’s strong support for their – 

and the Corps’ future. A future in which 

we all want to see an expanded, more 

effective, more efficient, more capable 

and more professional Corps as provided 

for in the PPACA. 

The timeline for all this does, however, 

leave much to be desired – a situation 

with which I expect the ASH would 

agree and which I am sure frustrates 

him as much as all of us. The longer the 


Corps is frozen in place – the “pause”, 

no Ready Reserve, no Public Health 

Science Track, months still to go before 

reorganization is completed – the more 

ground is lost. Qualified candidates for 

a commission will lose hope and drift 

away; other programs and problems 

will take precedence. It is a sad fact that 

in today’s fast paced world, institutions 

that are not moving forward are actually 

moving backward 

We can only urge the ASH and the 

Surgeon General to do all in their 

power to accelerate the reorganization 

and implement the PPACA and pledge 

COA’s full support for those goals. At 

the same time, we counsel patience for 

our members and echo the words of 

RADM David Rutstein in his farewell 

message to the Corps; your job in this 

crisis, as commissioned officers in the 

Public Health Service, is to stand by 

your service to the country as a uniformed 

officer and not shrink from it. 

Coast Guard Study Contemplates 

Casting Off PHS Health Support 

In an example of the consequences of 

the “pause” in calls-to-duty for Corps 

officers, after years of speculation and 

discussion the U.S. Coast Guard decided 

to invest money in a formal study to 

evaluate the merits of establishing 

their own medical corps and severing 

their long-standing relationship with 

the PHS Commissioned Corps. Coast 

Guard has hired the consulting firm 

Harkcon to conduct the review and 

provide recommendations. 

I spent an hour with the Harkcon 

team a few weeks ago discussing the 

pros and cons of such a step. From 

my perspective the cons, especially 

for the Coast Guard, far outweigh the 

pros of standing up their own medical 

corps. Cost is the number one factor to 

consider, with career path development 

for such a small cadre running a close 

second. While it would be an unfortunate 

development for the Corps to lose 

this mission area, I don’t think the long 

term consequences for the PHS would 

be all that great. 

Join Me as a Club 159 Member! 

COA is working hard for our members’ 

and the Corps’ interests. Our affiliated 

Foundation is also working hard 

in a variety of ways to tell the Corps’ 

story and advocate for your interests. 

COF financial support also helps COA 

accomplish its mission. COA and COF 

share office space and the Foundation’s 

contributions to rent and other overhead 

expenses certainly benefit the 

Association. Foundation grants to COA 

can also help with other expenses. But 

in order to help, the Foundation must 

have the resources to do so. 

And that’s where COF (and by extension 

COA) needs your urgent help in 

these trying times. If every COA member 

donated just $159 to COF (about a 

dozen lattes), we would raise $1 million 

– the goal for COF’s capital campaign. 

So I ask you to join me and COF’s 

Development Director, Brian 

McSheffrey, and the COA Directors 

and COF Trustees in joining with us 

and becoming members of Club 159. 

If not now, when? If not you, who? If 

you have not already, please visit the 

COA or COF website and join Club 159 

today. Help us help you. 

Yours Aye! 


15

COF Announces Scholarship Winners 

for Academic Year 2010-2011 

Six deserving dependents of PHS 

Commissioned Officers have 

been awarded a total of $3,250 in 

Scholarship money for the 2010- 

2011 academic year. Winners were 

chosen by a panel of PHS Officers. 

Congratulations to the following: 

Laura A. Divel, from Rockville, 

Maryland is the winner of the 

Ronald Lessing Memorial 

Scholarship. Laura is attending the 

University of Notre Dame pursuing 

a degree in Civil Engineering. Her 

COA sponsor is her mother, Captain 

Josephine E. Divel, USPHS. 

Nicholas Steketee, from Prevessin, 

France is the winner of the Fort 

Duchesne Branch Scholarship. He has 

been accepted to Stanford University. 

He is the dependent son of two COA 

members, Captain Kathleen Irwin, 

USPHS, (Ret.) and Captain Richard 

Steketee, USPHS, (Ret.). 

Mathew R. Higham, from Poland, 

Ohio is the winner of the North 

Carolina Branch Scholarship. 

He plans to attend either Miami 

University of Ohio or Villanova 

University. His sponsor is Captain 

Richard T. Higham, USPHS. 

Justin Rex Boice, from Rockville, 

Maryland is the winner of the Rio 

Grande Branch Scholarship. He is 

currently attending Pennsylvania State 

University. His COA sponsor is his father 

Captain John D. Boice Jr., USPHS, 

(Ret.). 

Jeremiah Traeger, from Pinetop, 

Arizona is the winner of the Baxter/ 

Riddick Scholarship. Jeremiah attends 

the University of Arizona, in 

Tucson, Arizona. His major is Chemical 

Engineering. His COA sponsor is 

Captain Marc Traeger, USPHS. 

Deborah E, Blackwell, from 

Wyoming, Ohio is the winner of the 

Little Colorado Branch Scholarship. 

Deborah will be graduating from 

the Wyoming High School and plans 

to attend Indiana University in 

Bloomington, Indiana. Her COA sponsor 

is her mother, LCDR Bonita D. 

Malit, USPHS, (Ret.). 

COF was disappointed with the limited 

number of scholarships it could award 

due to lack of participation by many of 

the COA branches. Also some applicants 

were ineligible due to their COA 

sponsors not being current with their 

COA dues. 

Scholarships are funded by individuals, 

including PHS officers both active 

and retired, COA branches and other 

organizations for as little as $250. 

Persons interested in contributing 

to the scholarship fund, want more 

information or whose dependents may 

wish to apply for an award are encouraged 

to contact Brian McSheffrey, the 

Foundation’s Development Director 

at 1-866-366-9593. He can also be 

reached at bmcsheffrey@coausphs.org. 



17

dhhs eliminates public health emergency surge capacity 

PHS Inactive Reserve Officers Dismayed at Notice of Dismissal 

ismayed” is probably not the 

“Dbest word to describe the 

strong and angry reaction of many 

Inactive Reserve officers upon receipt 

of letters dated September 7th from 

the Office of the Surgeon General. 

The letter informed them that the 

Patient Protection and Affordable Care 

Act (PPACA) “abolished the Inactive 

Reserve Corps” and their “commission 

as an IRC officer was terminated effective 

March 23, 2010.” 

For the record, COA strongly disputes 

the assertion that the Patient Protection 

and Affordable Care Act “abolished the 

Inactive Reserve Corps.” No where 

in that voluminous law is the Inactive 

Reserve component of the PHS 

Commissioned Corps even mentioned. 

We have confirmed with the principal 

congressional sponsor of the language 

in the bill that pertains to the Corps that 

it is not the intent of Congress to abolish 

the IRC; nor is that how the language 

in the law ought to be interpreted. 

Such congressional positions continue 

to be ignored by the DHHS Office 

of General Counsel from where, we 

are told, the idea to abolish the IRC 

originated. 

The effects of the unfortunate and 

incorrect decision to dissolve the IRC 

were immediate and widespread. Most 

obvious is the loss of any public health 

surge capacity by the federal government 

in the event of a public health 

emergency. IRC officers were key 

participants in the PHS Commissioned 

Corps response to Hurricane Katrina 

and other emergency response tasking. 

Less obvious was the sudden loss of 

highly-skilled reserve support provided 

in dozens of “short tour” assignments 

supporting the Department of Defense 

and other agencies. Inactive Reserve 

officers were withdrawn without notice 

from Walter Reed Army Medical 

Center, U.S. Northern Command, and 

other key assignments. 

DHHS meanwhile, points to PPACA 

authorization of a Ready Reserve component 

for the Corps and in the letter 

terminating the Inactive Reserve officers 

“encourage(s) interested individuals 

to apply.” All well and good except 

for two issues – one easily resolved, and 

one not so easily resolved. 

The first easy issue is that the Ready 

Reserve does not yet really exist. All 

of the rules and regulations that will 

govern the new Ready Reserve have 

yet to be approved. These include appointment 

criteria, policies, application 

procedures, compensation, promotion, 

assignment, retirement and a host 

of other little details where the devil 

so often resides. The OSG Office of 

Reserve Affairs, under the able direction 

of CAPT Carol Romano, worked 

hard to develop all these things over 

the last several months. Unfortunately, 

at last report, all the documentation 

appears lost within the OPHS bureaucracy 

while awaiting approval by the 

Assistant Secretary for Health. 

The second, more vexing issue is 

money. The PPACA authorizes $5 million 

in each fiscal year 2010 through 

2014 for recruitment and training and 

$12,500,000 in each of those same 

years for the Ready Reserve Corps. 

Funding authorized in the PPACA 

has to be appropriated before it is real. 

The problem is that the FY 2011 HHS 

Appropriations bill does not request 

such funding for the Ready Reserve. 

Why? Because DHHS did not request 

any such funding. 

Of course, the fate of all the FY 2011 appropriations 

bills is up in the air. It is very 

possible that the country will be funded 

on a series of continuing resolutions until 

the 112th Congress is seated in January. 

Another complicating factor is that 

without a billet-based force management 

system for the active duty PHS 

Commissioned Corps, determining the 

requirement for the size and composition 

of a Ready Reserve component is 

problematic. 

The obvious result is that a populated, 

operational, functional Ready Reserve 

component for the Commissioned Corps 

is still months, if not years, away. The 

parameters have to be approved, policies 

put in place, funding appropriated, and 

candidates identified and processed. 

In the meantime, thanks to the inexplicable 

determination of an attorney in 

OGC, the country’s only public health 

emergency surge capability no longer 

exists. How many hurricanes are swirling 

in the Atlantic this year? 

COA is advising all IRC officers to contact 

their Senators and Representative 

to protest the HHS decision. The 

Association is also taking our concerns 

about the IRC and Ready Reserve to 

select offices on Capitol Hill, including 

the Senate HELP and House Energy 

and Commerce Committees. 

The IRC officers themselves are also 

taking action including attracting media 

attention to the issue and even contemplating 

a lawsuit against DHHS. COA 

is consulting on these strategies, but we 

hope the issue will be favorably resolved 

before such activities are necessary. 

The Department needs to recognize 

and demonstrate appropriate appreciation 

for the services provided by 

Inactive Reserve officers. If the OGC 

finding cannot be overruled, then the 

Department must expedite the implementation 

– including finding the funding 

– of a Ready Reserve component. 

The Ready Reserve should include an 

Individual Ready Reserve (IRR) that 

provides for voluntary short tours 

similar to the services that were once 

provided by the IRC. 

To do less unnecessarily comprises the 

public health and national security of 

the nation. 


Attention All COA Local Branches! 

The Commissioned Officers 

Foundation could award only six 

dependent scholarships this year. The 

amount and number of scholarships 

awarded each year are determined annually, 

based on the dollars raised. The 

number of COA Branches supporting 

this program was very disappointing. 

Two of the six scholarships were 

funded by individuals. Only 4 of the 

90 branches participated in this year’s 

program. Thank you Fort Duchesne, 

Little Colorado River, North Carolina, 

and Rio Grande for your support! 

The Scholarships are intended for dependent 

children or dependent spouses of 

active duty, retired, or deceased officers 

of the USPHS Commissioned Corps and 

were created to recognize the contributions 

by families of the USPHS. 100% 

of the tax deductable donation to the 

Scholarship fund goes to students. 

To qualify for consideration the applicant 

must be a dependent child or 

dependent spouse of an active duty, retired 

or deceased officer of the USPHS 

Commissioned Corps and a member 

in good standing of COA. The awards 

are made without regard to race, creed, 

color, sex, religious belief, national 

origin, or rank of the sponsor. A board 

of PHS officers reviews and decides 

scholarship winners. 

Here are the details of donating in the 

form of a COF Scholarship: 

• The minimum donation for a 

scholarship is $250. 

• Branches donating can name the 

scholarship as they choose. Most 

Branches simply name the scholarship 

after their particular branch to gain 

the much deserved recognition. 

• Branches donating may choose one 

or more representatives from their 

Branch to serve on the Scholarship 

Awards Committee. 

• Individuals wishing to donate are 

highly encouraged as well. Again, they 

may name the scholarship as they wish. 

• Individuals that donate may also 

serve on the Scholarship Awards 

Committee. 

We strongly encourage all Branches to 

participate in the worthwhile program. 

Please discuss this program within your 

Branch and urge their support. We can 

do better than only four Branches 

participating! 

UPDATE: We have received two 

new donations from the District of 

Columbia and Greater LA Branches 

for next year’s dependent scholarships! 

Doesn’t your Branch want to join them? 

Contact Brian McSheffrey at 301-731- 

9080 or bmcsheffrey@coausphs.org if 

you would like to donate or discuss this 

option any further. 


19

the fight for transferability: 

Looking Back and Looking Forward 

In December 2009, COA initiated a call 

to action requesting that all members 

write their elected representatives in the 

House and Senate, urging their support 

for extending the provision of transferability 

of Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits to 

PHS officers. Largely thanks to these 

efforts, there is a bill currently before the 

full Senate (S. 3447) that would allow the 

Secretary of DHHS to grant PHS officers 

the ability to transfer unused educational 

benefits to family members. While 

the next few months will determine our 

success, there is no doubt that we could 

not have made it this far without the 

legislative outreach of more than 250 officers 

and family members. This level of 

individual legislative outreach by COA 

membership is unprecedented. 

I read many of your letters, and I know 

many of you spent a great deal of time 

convincing fellow officers, family, and 

friends to write on our behalf about this 

issue. I certainly could not do justice to 

everybody who deserves praise, but I 

would like to mention by name several 

officers whose contributions have been 

noteworthy: CAPT Jose Belardo, LCDR 

Ben Brahim, LCDR Michelle Colledge, 

CAPT Alan Echt, CAPT Sandra Farley, 

LT Martin Guardia, CDR Dana Hall, 

CAPT Chuck Hayden, CAPT Chuck 

Kardous, LT Terry Lew, CAPT Angela 

Martinelli, RADM Patrick O’Carroll, 

CAPT Mark Papania, CAPT Steve 

Rosenthal, CDR Ann Vu, and CAPT 

Craig Wilkins. 

Bear in mind our work is not yet done. 

The status of legislation affecting the 

Post-9/11 GI Bill is changing rapidly. 

It is not too late to ask your elected 

Senators (in your home of record) to 

support the provision in S. 3447 that 

grants transferability of benefits to 

family members. You are also encouraged 

to ask your elected Representative 

to support an amendment to H.R. 5933 

(the House companion bill to S. 3447) 

to extend transferability of GI Bill benefits 

to PHS and NOAA Corps officers. 

If you would like tips on contacting your 

elected representatives at this point, do 

not hesitate to contact me at kysatyr@ 

hotmail.com. Since the status of these bills 

is changing quickly, the information above 

may be out-of-date by the time this edition 

of Frontline is published. Feel free to 

check with me or Judy Rensberger before 

contacting your elected representatives. 

To the more than 200 of you who have 

actively participated in legislative outreach 

for GI Bill transferability over the 

last two years, I thank you for stepping 

up and helping the Corps. To the rest 

of you, the door is still open and the 

challenge awaits. 

By CDR Jonathan Rash 


Senator Inouye Received PHS Flag from COA and COF 

On August 5, 2010, Senator Inouye was presented with the U.S. Public Heath Service Flag by representatives of the Commissioned 

Officers Association of the U.S. Public Health Service and the PHS Commissioned Officers Foundation for the Advancement of 

Public Health. In recognition of this, Senator Inouye commemorated the remarks into the Congressional Record (below). 


21



23

The COA Frontline (ISSN 10937161) is published monthly except 

a combined issue January/February and July/August 

by the Commissioned Officers Association of the United 

States Public Health Service, 8201 Corporate Drive, Suite 

200 Landover, MD 20785, (301) 731-9080; Toll-free (866) 

366-9593; FAX: (301)731-9084; Periodicals Postage Paid at 

Hyattsville, MD and additional mailing offices. 

COA FRONTLINE 

8201 Corporate Drive, Suite 200 

Landover, MD 20785 

POSTMASTER: Send address changes to COA Frontline c/o 

Commissioned Officers Association, 8201 Corporate Drive, 

Suite 200, Landover, MD 20785. 

A report of timely information concerning activities of the 

Commissioned Corps of the U.S. Public Health Service. 

Distributed exclusively to Association Members. 

Executive Director 

Jerry Farrell 

gfarrell@coausphs.org 

Director of Administration 

Teresa Hayden 

thayden@coausphs.org 

Government Relations Director 

Judith Rensberger 

jrensberger@coausphs.org 

Development Director 

Brian McSheffrey 

bmcsheffrey@coausphs.org 

Membership Coordinator 

Malissa Spalding 

mspalding@coausphs.org 

Foundation Project Coordinator & 

Database Mgr. 

Julia Veeder 

jveeder@coausphs.org 

Administrative Assistant 

Christina Grill 

cgrill@coausphs.org 

Conference Planners 

Leading Edge Solutions 

Tim O’Neil/Diana Hallman 

866-544-9677 

Group Insurance - AGIA 

800-818-9785 

visit us at www.coausphs.org 

©2010 COMMISSIONED OFFICERS ASSOCIATION

rutstein retirement sends shock waves throughout the commissioned

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