Walter Reed National Military Medical Center said Wednesday its decision to hire a secular firm to replace the Franciscan priests who oversee pastoral care in the Bethesda, Maryland, facility is under review.
The announcement came after days of pushback from congressional Republicans and Catholic leaders, including Timothy Broglio, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops and archbishop for the Military Services.
The Defense Health Agency, the DOD unit that oversees the Walter Reed facility, issued a statement Tuesday saying the contract, which had been awarded to a secular business that cannot employ priests according to Catholic Church rules, “is under review to ensure it adequately supports the religious needs of our patients and beneficiaries.”
Archbishop Broglio, who earlier declared that the DHA exhibited “disdain for the sick” by ending the Franciscan relationship, said the archdiocese “has been assured that the situation will be rectified, and waits to learn of the outcome” of that process.
Neither the archbishop nor his spokesman would name the source of that “assurance,” however.
The medical center last week — some 48 hours before Catholics marked Holy Week in the run-up to Easter Sunday — sent a cease-and-desist order to the Franciscan friars at Holy Name College Friary in Silver Spring, ejecting them after a 20-year relationship with the facility.
The Defense Health Agency, the DOD unit that oversees Walter Reed, said it had awarded the chaplaincy services contract instead to Mack Global, a private firm.
Critics said the contractor would not be able to provide the same services as the Franciscans because priests serving as chaplains must work for a bishop, not a private company.
Mack says on its website that its main business lines serving its government and private-sector clients include “telework consulting services, administrative and religious staffing, transportation and roadway services, [and] professional development and training.”
Contacted by a reporter after news of the award broke, Robin Mack, Mack Global’s CEO, said, “We’re still in the process of getting all that worked out” when asked how they will supply Catholic priests for the facility.
The original decision to sever ties with the Franciscans brought a sharp rebuke from Sen. Marco Rubio, Florida Republican, who along with 10 Senate and House GOP colleagues, sent a letter to Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin.
The lawmakers argued that the move shows the DHA is underprioritizing appropriate pastoral care for Roman Catholic service members — especially when the agency is, at the same time, embracing controversial treatments such as gender transition care.
“DHA doctors are advocating for minors to receive experimental gender transition procedures, but no one seems to be advocating for the right of our service members and veterans to receive the most important sacraments during this most sacred time of year,” the letter said.
Republicans signing the letter included Sens. Roger Marshall and Jerry Moran of Kansas and James Lankford of Oklahoma; and House Reps. Doug Lamborn of Colorado; Michael Waltz, Cory Mills and Carlos Gimenez of Florida; Mike Gallagher of Wisconsin; Jim Banks of Indiana and Mariannette Miller-Meeks of Iowa.
The archbishop’s statement came hours after a newsletter from the Military Chaplains Association indicated the contract would “be corrected by the end of the week.”
The MCA, a nonprofit that supports chaplains in the military, said the DHA “contracting officer — not located at Walter Reed — was provided the specific technical information needed to select an appropriate provider of services by the senior chaplain at Walter Reed. Sadly, the contracting officer chose to disregard the requirements.”
In his comments, Archbishop Broglio said the contract award “clearly … was an error, probably caused by not consulting a subject matter expert.”
Sandy Dean, a regional spokeswoman for the DHA told The Washington Times, “Our team is currently reviewing the contract,” and would not discuss specifics at this point.
Also on Thursday, another private group, the Chaplain Alliance for Religious Liberty and Michael Berry, its attorney at First Liberty Institute, wrote to Secretary Austin to protest the contract award as “both legally and morally wrong.”
“It is beyond inexcusable for the Biden Administration to deprive America’s sick and wounded service members the lifesaving care they need just to save a few dollars. And to make this decision during Holy Week only pours salt into the wound,” Mr. Berry said in a statement.
The facility has 244 inpatient beds and handled 7,400 patient admissions in 2022, Mr. McNamara said.
There are also 7,100 staff personnel at Walter Reed both for its hospital and the numerous clinics at the facility, all of whom can also access chaplaincy services if desired.
The Holy Name Friars said the abrupt termination of their relationship with DHA was “certainly disappointing … after building trust and so many wonderful relationships and friendships,” but they “respect the process” of awarding contracts.
“It has been an incredible privilege — and, really, a very powerful ministerial experience — for the Franciscan Friars to be invited into the lives of these true American heroes who have sacrificed so much for our country,” the friars said.
